(WNY News Now) – A Tonawanda man has been sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison for a 2024 crash that killed a 21-year-old skateboarder on Buffalo’s West Side.

Brian M. Borth, 30, of Tonawanda, was sentenced Friday in Erie County Court after pleading guilty to charges stemming from the fatal crash.

According to the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, Borth was driving south on Niagara Street at about 12:40 a.m. May 8, 2024, when his vehicle struck 21-year-old Allen Angel Ruiz, who was riding a skateboard in the southbound lane near Fargo Avenue. Ruiz was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators determined Borth was driving at a high rate of speed and was under the combined influence of alcohol and a drug. Authorities said the vehicle was traveling at 111 mph seconds before striking Ruiz.

After the initial collision, Borth lost control, struck a parked vehicle in the northbound lane and crashed into a home. Prosecutors said he then left the vehicle and ran from the scene. Buffalo police later found him near West Avenue and Albany Street. He was taken to Erie County Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries.

In May 2026, Borth pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter, two counts of second-degree vehicular manslaughter and leaving the scene of an incident without reporting that resulted in death.

Borth received an indeterminate prison sentence of 4 to 12 years. His New York State driver’s license was also revoked as a condition of the sentence.

The investigation was conducted by members of the Buffalo Police Department and Buffalo Fire Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Christine O. Murray of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau and Assistant Chief Christopher M. McCarthy of the Buffalo City Court Bureau.