YORK COUNTY, Va. — Newly-released court documents show Virginia State Police appear to be in the process of pursuing charges against both drivers involved in a party bus crash that killed three people on Interstate 64 earlier this month.
The crash, which happened in the early morning of Dec. 16 in the eastbound lanes near the 241-mile marker in York County, sent 20 people to the hospital.
A search warrant filed Tuesday shows the bus driver, Antonio Wiggins, was suspended from driving and was traveling well under the speed limit at the time of the crash.
The warrant also shows the driver of the tractor-trailer, which hit the bus, had falsified log books and was "driving well outside his working duty time allowed."
In the warrant, investigators said they found the bus was overweight. The driver told State Police the bus couldn't go faster than 40 miles-per-hour because of the added weight.
The party bus driver, according to the warrant, said he noticed a tractor-trailer coming up fast behind him and changed lanes to try to get out of the way. The tractor-trailer driver reported he did not see any tail lights on the party bus.
The party bus struck a guard rail after being hit, the search warrant stated. The bus "lost its entire cab shell and all the passengers were ejected...."
Troopers found many empty alcohol bottles in the party bus wreckage. Four unknown pill bottles were found on the floor of the tractor-trailer cab along with a diabetic sugar tester, according to the warrant.
The warrant also shows troopers are looking to search through 13 cell phones found at the crash scene.
So far, charges have not been filed in the case.
Three victims died at the scene of the crash. They were identified as Xzavier Evans, 25, of Norfolk; Jontae Russel, 21, of Norfolk; and Montia Bouie, 19, of Chesapeake.
The funeral for two of the victims is set for Friday.
