The driver who is accused of causing a fiery crash between a pickup truck and a group of motorcycle riders has been indicted on 23 charges saying he negligently caused the deaths and was under the influence of drugs at the time of the incident.
Officials with the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office said Volodymyr Zhukovskyy was driving the truck that slammed into motorcyclists in June on a rural highway in Randolph, New Hampshire. The crash left seven bikers dead, and at least three injured.
Zhukovskyy is to be arraigned by video on Nov. 5. He has been jailed without bail since the crash according to The Associated Press.
The indictments include seven counts of negligent homicide; seven counts of negligent homicide — driving under the influence; seven counts of manslaughter-reckless; one count of driving while intoxicated; and one count of reckless conduct.
He faces up to 378 years in prison.
The toxicology report for Zhukovskyy showed he was positive for an unspecified drug that made him incapable of driving safely when his pickup truck crossed the center yellow line and crashed into the motorcyclists.
Zhukovskyy also said that he reached for a drink on the passenger side of the truck just before the crash, according to the report. That violation was labeled as "inattentive driving."
The crash sent shock waves through New England’s community of motorcycle enthusiasts and military veterans, which sometimes overlap. The crash involved members of Marine JarHeads MC, a motorcycle club in New England that includes Marines and their spouses.
“When something like this happens, we all feel it,” said Cat Wilson, who organizes a motorcycle charity event in Massachusetts and is a friend of some of the crash victims. “There is no tighter community than our biker community.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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