A FedEx truck driver involved in a crash that killed an ex-Long Island track star and his two children was said to be repeatedly using his phone before the fatal incident.
Per the New York Post, the driver, identified as 30-year-old Santos Valentin, allegedly accessed his phone 25 times and “periodically” typed and swiped not too long before the crash. The individuals Valentin is accused of killing with his FedEx tractor-trailer were identified as 43-year-old Donnell Hickson, his son Decir, 18, and his daughter Kyla, 11.
The three deceased victims were riding in a Honda Civic when the fatal July 2024 collision occurred on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Valentin survived the crash and received medical treatment in a hospital. But Hickson and his two children succumbed to their injuries at the scene.
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Valentin has since been charged with three felony counts of homicide by a vehicle, and he voluntarily surrendered to police on February 20. The 30-year-old suspect was not in a seatbelt when the fatal crash occurred. He also told police that the collision happened after the vehicle Hickson was riding in “came out of nowhere.”
But the events before the fatal crash were captured by the FedEx tractor-trailer’s dash camera. Prosecutors said that in the footage, Valentin is seen“using his cellphone for an extended period of time well before the crash,” the New York Post reported.
“Valentin looks down or glances at his phone a total of 25 times. In that same 48 seconds, Valentin looks up or glances at the road a total of 20 times,” Newsday reported. He was also seen “periodically tapping and swiping the screen.”
The Honda was said to be in the left lane and driving east not too long before the crash. But the vehicle then switched to the right lane and suddenly stopped. The FedEx truck was behind the Honda when it stopped in the right lane, and authorities said they’re trying to establish why the car came to a halt.
Magisterial District Judge Joseph Stauffer set Valentin’s bail at $300,000, which he posted. Authorities are yet to set a date for a preliminary hearing.
