A local man jumped to his death from the Mathews Bridge Tuesday night after crashing his car and now Action News is learning why he did it.
Dive teams and rescue crews suspended their search Wednesday morning after scanning the water for several hours. Investigators say just before 10 p.m. Tuesday, the driver of a dark-colored SUV was speeding on the Mathews Bridge, crashed into the median, spun out of control and slammed into another car that was carrying five passengers.
Less than 15 minutes before the incident the SUV driver, identified as Torrence Johnson, called his ex-girlfriend of 13 years to say goodbye.
"He called saying that he loved me, and everybody thinks he's lying and watch the news in the morning," said Johnson's ex-girlfriend Shatahnya McMillan. He made the news especially because of what he did after the crash.
"They say he got out, walked and jumped. That's what the detective told me," said McMillan.
McMillan said she had him admitted to a mental facility last year. Recently, he went back to school at Florida State College at Jacksonville to take on a new trade. She thought he was getting better.
"I tried to help him as much as I could. I did everything I could," she said. Now all she and his family want is for him to be laid to rest.
"I feel that they should still continue to search until they at least find his body," said McMillan.
Crews suspended their search, hoping that his body will float to the surface of the river. The other passengers involved in the crash were not injured.
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