Three motorcyclists were killed in three crashes around the state over a warm and clear summertime weekend, authorities said.
The first of the crashes occurred about 1 a.m. Saturday, when Justin J. Posusta, 24, crashed at the intersection of Lacy Court and Lindsey Lane near his Belle Plaine home, police said.
The motorcycle kept going without its helmetless operator, went through a chain-link fence, rammed a home and punctured a natural gas line, according to police. The gas leak was quickly contained.
About 9:30 a.m. Sunday in southeastern Minnesota, a motorcyclist attempting to pass a pickup truck on Hwy. 61 near Wabasha hit the turning truck, according to the State Patrol. Troy A. Malek, of Oakbrook Terrace, Ill., was killed.
At roughly 2 p.m. Sunday in Sherburne County, a pickup making a turn at Hwy. 10 and Sherburne Avenue in Becker struck a motorcycle, the patrol said. Killed was Brett A. Behnke, 52, of Turtle River, Minn.
Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482
