Duluth group home staffer allegedly took passengers on reckless high-speed van ride before crashing

A group home van driver took two passengers on a reckless two-hour ride on Duluth streets while extremely drunk and high, consistently reaching speeds of more than 100 mph until he crashed into an SUV and seriously injured the other driver, according to charges.

Michael Edward Rahja Jr., 19, was charged Monday in St. Louis County District Court with criminal vehicular operation, leaving the scene of a crash involving injury, driving without a valid license and underage drinking in connection with his reckless behavior behind the wheel on Thursday.

Rahja was arrested that night and remained jailed Tuesday in lieu of $75,000 bail ahead of a court appearance on Dec. 2. The Minnesota Star Tribune has reached out to his attorney for a response to the allegations.

A preliminary breath test conducted by law enforcement soon after the crash measured his blood alcohol content at 0.228%, nearly three times the legal limit for someone at least 21 years old to be driving in Minnesota.

Police said Rahja was driving for TBI Residential and Community Services, which specializes in assisting clients with traumatic brain injuries.

TBI spokesperson Melissa Patricio said late Tuesday afternoon that “the company declines to comment at this time.”

According to the criminal complaint:

The SUV driver, a 60-year-old woman from Duluth, was taken by emergency responders to a nearby hospital, suffering from three cracked vertebrae and a concussion. The complaint did not reveal any injuries sustained by the van’s occupants.

In the time leading up to the crash, callers to 911 reported Rahja was “driving at speeds upwards of 100 miles an hour and driving in and out of the driving lane, passing cars,” the complaint read.

One of his passengers told law enforcement that Rahja had been drinking alcohol before getting behind the wheel. The passenger added that Rahja “had been driving recklessly for the past two hours, by which he meant, consistently driving at speeds of over 100 miles an hour and almost rear-ending other vehicles,” the complaint continued.

Those crashes were averted only because the van had a feature that automatically applied the brakes when sensing a potential collision.

According to charges, Rahja was attempting to avoid a head-on crash with an oncoming vehicle when he hit the SUV to his right while attempting to pass it.

Once law enforcement caught up to Rahja that night, he said he had recently downed half of a small bottle of vodka and smoked marijuana. He added that the vape he routinely uses was 80% THC, the active ingredient for marijuana, and he had been puffing on it constantly.

Inside his jacket pocket was a pack of unopened THC cigars. He said he had been smoking others like those earlier in the day.