Man driving again without license charged in collision that critically injured Minnetonka teen

A man with a long history of getting on the road despite the state repeatedly pulling his driving privileges has been charged with speeding through a red light at a Minnetonka intersection and causing a collision that critically injured a teenager.

Mohamed Aydarus Salad, 29, of Minnetonka appeared in Hennepin County District Court Monday after being charged with criminal vehicular operation in connection with the crash on March 5 at Hwy. 7 and Williston Road that left 18-year-old Lauren E. Olson with severe brain damage and other serious injuries.

Al Olson, Lauren’s father, attended the appearance and said she is doing well physically and mentally in her recovery.

“She’s doing fine, absolutely fine,” he said, adding that it’s not the outcome you expect from this kind of accident.

Judge Amber Brennan set Salad’s bail at $25,000 with conditions, including that he not drive a car. His public defender, Isa Domin, noted that Salad didn’t have a criminal record, while Assistant County Attorney Judith Cole countered that he had a lengthy history of misdemeanor traffic violations. Ultimately, Brennan sided with the state’s argument for higher bail.

The state Department of Public Safety said Monday that Salad’s license had been revoked since December 2021 for driving without insurance.

Court records show that he has convictions for careless driving and inattentive driving. He has also been cited nine times for driving while his license was either suspended or revoked, the records reveal.

She spent the first week after the crash in a coma and 1½ months in the hospital before her discharge.

According to last week’s criminal complaint:

Olson was turning left in her Nissan Rogue from westbound Hwy. 7 to southbound Williston Road about 2:20 p.m., when Salad sped on the shoulder past stopped vehicles on eastbound Hwy. 7 and hit the teenager’s SUV broadside. The impact was captured on traffic camera video.

Computer data from Salad’s SUV revealed that he was driving 96 miles per hour five seconds before the crash, 86 mph about a half-second before the collision and 68 to 74 mph at impact with the Olson’s vehicle. The speed limit on Hwy. 7 is 55 mph.