Truck driver charged with intoxication manslaughter in N Austin I-35 crash was sober
Solomun Weldekeal-Araya, the big rig driver who last month was charged with intoxication manslaughter and intoxication assault in connection to a fatal multi-car collision on Interstate 35 in North Austin, tested negative for drugs and alcohol.
That's according to his court-appointed attorney, Bristol Myers, who on Friday received the result of a blood draw from a private lab contracted by the Austin Police Department.
Myers said he is moving to get his client out of jail quickly and wants the Police Department held responsible for their investigation.
"It is botched," he said. "It is just absolutely botched."
The Police Department did not immediately have a comment Friday afternoon but an APD official confirmed the result of the blood test to the American-Statesman.
Weldekeal-Araya remains in jail on a combined $1.2 million bond.
Two different arrest affidavits claimed that Weldekeal Araya had exhibited signs of intoxication during field sobriety testing and was likely under the influence of central nervous system depressants. He blew a 0.00 on a preliminary breath test and told officers he had not consumed any drugs or alcohol.
"(The detective) believes the driver is under the influence CNS depressants and is not capable of operating a vehicle safely," according to one of the affidavits.
One of the affidavits said that a review of Weldekeal-Araya's driver log showed he had a history of "hours of service" violations, which is when a commercial driver works longer hours than is allowed by law, including "several" in the week leading up to the crash. He also had "prior hazardous moving violations" while operating commercial vehicles, the second warrant stated.
Myers told the Statesman on Friday he believes it is possible that his client could face other charges, but he said he believes the crash may have been the result of an accident.
The crash occurred shortly after 11:30 p.m. on March 13 on southbound I-35 near Parmer Lane. It killed five people, including a family of four and an elderly woman, and injured at least a dozen others.
Weldekeal Araya, 37, was charged with five counts of intoxication manslaughter and two counts of intoxication assault in connection to the crash. While he was driving a load for Amazon, he was employed by a small, Dallas-based trucking company called ZBN Transport.
At least two people injured in the crash have sued Weldekeal Araya, ZBN Transport and Amazon.
The blood draw results come as Weldekeal-Araya has been demonized by conservative commentators and critics.
Traffic along Interstate 35 near Parmer Lane had slowed to a crawl late Thursday so cars could merge into one lane when a big rig barreled into them, causing a chain reaction that killed five people, federal investigators said Saturday.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Trucker charged with intoxication manslaughter in I-35 crash was sober
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Argentine President Milei Cleared of Misconduct Over LIBRA Promotion: Report
Argentine President Javier Milei was cleared of wrongdoing over his promotion of the LIBRA memecoin in February, the Buenos Aires Herald reported on Saturday. A resolution issued Friday by the country's anti-corruption office argued that the president was speaking "as an economist and not a public official," when he shared news of LIBRA on X. The president's personal account "was created long before he was elected country president, and even before the beginning of his previous term as deputy," according to the resolution, signed by Alejandro Melik, the head of the country's anti-corruption office. Milei's post about the Solana-based memecoin promoted it as a project designed to help small and medium-sized Argentine companies raise capital. LIBRA surged to a market capitalization of around $4.5 billion. He deleted the post only hours later, saying that he had not been aware of the details of the project when he promoted it. In the ensuing sell-off, LIBRA crashed by 90%, wiping out over $4 billion in value. On-chain data from Nansen showed that 86% of traders lost a total of $251 million, with the remainder securing $180 million in profits. To make matters worse, it was revealed Libra's co-creator Hayden Davis bragged in text messages about his influence over Milei because of payments he had been making to Karina Milei, the president's sister and a powerful figure in his government.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Exclusive-UnitedHealth eyes $1 billion deal to exit Latin America as insurer refocuses on US, sources say
By Tatiana Bautzer and Sabrina Valle NEW YORK (Reuters) -UnitedHealth Group is weighing multiple bids for its Latin American operations, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter, as the insurer buckles down after a series of unprecedented missteps that include the ouster of its CEO and a reported criminal accounting probe. The largest U.S. health insurer has been trying to exit Latin America since 2022, but the sale of Banmedica has taken on increasing urgency in recent months as the insurer took hits on multiple fronts, according to one of the people. New CEO Steve Hemsley told shareholders last week that he was determined to earn back their trust after an earnings miss and a Wall Street Journal report that the company was under criminal investigation for alleged Medicare fraud. UnitedHealth has said it was not notified by the Department of Justice and that it stands by the integrity of its operations. Hemsley replaced Andrew Witty as CEO, who had been in the post for only a matter of months following the murder of his predecessor, Brian Thompson, in New York in December while on his way to a meeting with investors. The company has four non-binding bids for its Banmedica subsidiary, which operates in Colombia and Chile, for about $1 billion, according to both people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private. UnitedHealth's shares tumbled 25.5% in May alone and year-to-date are down 40%. UnitedHealth left Brazil in 2023 and Peru in March. It's aiming to get around $1 billion for Banmedica's operations in Colombia and Chile, the people said. The two people said the company expects to set a deadline for binding proposals as soon as July. UnitedHealth received bids from Washington, D.C.-based private equity firm Acon Investments; Sao Paulo-based private equity firm Patria Investments; Texas non-profit health firm Christus Health; and Lima-based healthcare and insurance provider Auna, the people said. Auna is in talks with a financial partner, one of the sources added. Banmedica's annual earnings before income taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, is more than $200 million a year. Patria and Christus Health declined to comment. UnitedHealth, Acon and Auna did not respond to requests for comment. FAILED EXPANSION PLANS UnitedHealth bought Banmedica in 2018, with CEO David Scott saying he was "establishing a foundation for growth in South America for the next decades." At the time, UnitedHealth paid around 12 times Banmedica's EBITDA, according to one of the people. Three years later, the insurer decided to leave Latin America as it grappled with losses in its largest operation in the region, Brazil's Amil, which had been acquired a decade earlier. It divested from its Brazilian operations in late 2023. Banmedica is currently profitable, but is considered too small by UnitedHealth. It serves over 2.1 million consumers through its health insurance programs and has around 4 million patient visits annually across its network of 13 hospitals and 143 medical centers. UnitedHealth booked an $8.3 billion loss last year related to the sale of its South American operations - $7.1 billion stemming from the Brazil exit and $1.2 billion from Banmedica. "These losses relate to our strategic exit of South American markets and include significant losses related to foreign currency translation effects," the company said in a February filing. Brazilian investment bank BTG Pactual is advising UnitedHealth on the sale.
Business Upturn
12 hours ago
- Business Upturn
Breaking: Missing Indore woman Sonam linked to husband's murder plot found safe in Ghazipur
By News Desk Published on June 9, 2025, 08:42 IST Last updated June 9, 2025, 08:42 IST In a major breakthrough, Sonam Raghuvanshi, the Indore-based woman accused of murdering her husband during their honeymoon, was arrested today from a dhaba in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh. Sonam had married Indore-based businessman Raja Raghuvanshi on May 11. The couple travelled to Meghalaya on May 20 for their honeymoon. According to investigators, Sonam had conspired with three of her friends, who were also present in Meghalaya, to kill her husband. Raja Raghuvanshi was allegedly murdered during the trip with the help of these accomplices. After the crime, Sonam had gone missing, triggering a widespread search. Today, authorities traced her to a dhaba in Ghazipur. She was taken into custody, underwent a medical examination, and is currently being held at a One Stop Center for safety and further inquiry. The case has now escalated with Sonam under arrest and the search continuing for her accomplices. News desk at
