Truck driver with insufficient ELP and no CDL jailed two months after fatal 6 vehicle pile up

A truck driver allegedly responsible for a six vehicle pile up in Indiana earlier this summer was taken into custody on Wednesday more than two months after the fatal wreck. 

The accident happened just before 2 p.m. on June 3rd on southbound Interstate 69 in Allen County, Indiana. The driver was charged in July, and taken into custody on August 5th. 

According to WANE, 70-year-old truck driver Gjergj Degaj did not hit the brakes before crashing into two cars stopped in a construction zone. One of those cars went skidding into a ditch, while the other hit a second semi truck. Degaj’s rig then struck that same second semi truck and pushed it into a third car. The third car then collided with yet another semi truck. 

Two people in the third car were treated at the scene and released. Multiple people were left trapped in their vehicles, and two people in the first car were killed – 70-year-old Bradley Maller and 15-year-old Drew Saddington. That car was part of a driving school program. No other injuries were reported. 

Investigation of the crash revealed that Degaj was driving at 73 mph through a 55 mph work zone at the time of the crash and did not hit his brakes before colliding with the first car. Investigators determined that driving conditions were clear, and the construction zone was properly marked. Investigators confiscated a tablet from the semi truck and discovered that Youtube was in use at the time of the wreck.  

Degaj was transported to a hospital where he was interviewed by the Indiana State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division. During the interview, it was determined that he failed to understand the questions and did not demonstrate sufficient English Language Proficiency. Troopers also determined that Degaj did not have a valid CDL. 

Degaj has been charged with two counts of Reckless Homicide and one count of Criminal Recklessness with a Deadly Weapon. He was booked into the Allen County Jail on Wednesday where he is currently awaiting trial, reported 21 Alive News.