** Warning, graphic content **
Multiple 911 calls that were made moments after former Las Vegas Raider Henry Ruggs allegedly caused a fatal car crash have been released. The recordings go into some detail that may be sensitive to some readers, with one witness telling the operator she believed a person was trapped in the burning truck.
The recordings were originally obtained by TMZ from the Metro Police department.
The female caller said she lives near the scene of the accident and claimed that she was in bed when she heard the crash. She went on to say that when she looked at the crash site, all she saw were flames.
“It’s almost all gone,” she said, “and I think someone is in it.”
Tina Tintor, a 23-year-old Vegas resident, had worked at a Target close to her home and the crash site. The store is providing grief counselors to deal with her death.
Her manager, Travis Winston, told TMZ, “”We’re deeply saddened by the death of our former team member, Tina Tintor. We extend our sympathies to her family and friends, and to all those impacted by this tragedy.”
In the second call a man — who said that he heard but didn’t see the crash — told the operator, “I want to say the [Corvette] was probably speeding. I mean, I heard loud revving, loud noises, and then a big collision.”
Ruggs was reportedly driving 156mph just before the wreck, breaking down to 127mph right before impact, and was tested at a .161 BAC, more than twice the legal limit in Nevada.
Prosecutors in his case have filed five felonies, as a result of his accident that left one woman dead.
Prosecutors now have decided to charge Ruggs with additional felony counts of DUI and reckless driving due to the injuries suffered by his passenger, girlfriend Kiara Je’nai Kilgo-Washington, who also goes by Rudy Washington. The misdemeanor charge is possession of a firearm while under the influence, stemming from a loaded gun found in Ruggs’ car at the scene.
Ruggs’ accident marks the fourth active NFL player in the last 25 years to be involved in a drunk-driving incident that resulted in death. The Las Vegas police tweeted that “Ruggs will be charged with DUI resulting in death, and according to USA Today, conviction on these charges could result in a sentence of two to 20 years in prison, under Nevada Law, which identifies the charge as a Class B felony.
All three previous players not only got lighter sentences than the average citizen would, all three returned to the NFL.
The main message from David Chesnoff, who is Ruggs’ lawyer in the case, was that he hopes people do not “pre-judge” his client before his day in court.
