LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) — A FedEx truck driver was on his phone before causing a crash that killed a father and his two children on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Lancaster County last summer, according to State Police.
Santos Valentin, 30, of Philadelphia, looked down at his phone 25 times right before crashing into a Honda Accord on I-76 at mm 268.7 in Penn Township just before 4:30 a.m. July 20, charging documents filed Wednesday from State Police show.
State Police say there was a dash camera in the FedEx truck that had a forward and interior camera. The footage was obtained through a search warrant during the investigation, and on it, State Police say they saw Valentin “using his cell phone an extended period of time well before the crash.”
After entering a “S” curve, he then took a straightaway and picked up his phone. The charging documents say he was seen on video “periodically tapping/swiping the screen” with his thumb right before crashing into the Honda, which switched lanes and came to a stop just seconds before being hit by the truck.
Troopers said the video showed both the vehicles then went off the road with the FedEx truck going over the top of the Honda. Once Troopers were on scene, they saw the FedEx vehicle, which was a truck with a double set of trailers, and pieces of the Honda which was under the rear of the truck.
Valentin, who was in an ambulance at the scene, told Troopers the vehicle “came out of nowhere,” and that he was traveling between 65-75mph. He also said he was not wearing his seatbelt.
At the time of the crash, the roadway was dry and visible, Troopers noted.
Valentin faces three felony charges of homicide by vehicle, along with summary charges of traffic violations.
He is out of Lancaster County Prison after he posted his bail set at $300,000 by Magisterial District Judge Joseph Stauffer. A preliminary hearing has yet to be scheduled.
CREDIT: ABC27 News Jared Weaver
