On Saturday, May 2, around 7 p.m., Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to the scene of a single-vehicle rollover on a dirt road on the 11400 block of Willow Point Road in Cornville, east of State Route 89A and south of Page Springs.
Fire personnel arrived first to find a red Nissan hatchback sedan on its side.
The driver died from his injuries. He has been identified as 24-year-old Matthew Mattias, of Cottonwood.
Four other passengers sustained various injuries which were serious but not life-threatening, including three males ages 14, 17 and 38, and a 16-year-old girl.
During interviews, deputies were told the group was returning from a trip to the river when Mattias, who had been drinking alcoholic beverages, allegedly intentionally began to swerve in the roadway for fun. He eventually lost control of the car, causing it to roll on its side.
Mattias was reportedly not wearing a seatbelt. There is also indication many of the passengers were not wearing seatbelts at the time of the rollover.
