Truck driver faces dozens of felony charges after colliding with loaded school bus in Indiana

A truck driver is facing a slew of serious charges for his role in a collision involving a school bus loaded with students in Warsaw, Indiana, over the weekend.

Brooklyn, New York, based truck driver Victor Santos, is facing 26 felony counts to “match the 26 victims of this crime,” according to the Warsaw, Indiana, Police Department (WPD).

The charges include four counts of Causing Serious Bodily Injury While Operating a Vehicle (Operating while Intoxicated) and 22 counts of Criminal Recklessness (While Armed with a Deadly Weapon).

Bond for Santos was set at $75,000 Surety plus $2,500 cash.

The charges were issued following a crash that occurred shortly after 8 p.m. on November 12 after WPD received complaints about a semi truck being operated by Santos erratically and at high speeds while entering the Warsaw city limits westbound on U.S. 30.

Two minutes after WPD dispatched officers to respond to the complaints, the received new reports that the truck had collided with a school bus carrying a high school hockey team at the intersection of Center Street, causing the bus to overturn.

The semi truck continued driving west for about an eighth of a mile then went into a ditch.

WPD said that witnesses indicated that Santos ran a red light “by several seconds before striking the bus during its turn.”

Police say that they obtained a search warrant to draw blood for a substance use test after noticing signs of alcohol impairment in Santos. Santos reportedly failed field sobriety tests but refused a chemical test.

The occupants of the bus included 23 students from St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago, two coaches, and the bus driver. Sixteen of the bus occupants were injured. Three of the injuries were considered critical, but WPD later said that all of the people injured in this crash are now listed in stable condition.