ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A man accused of driving nearly 150 mph while drunk prior to a deadly crash has been arrested nearly two years after the Orange County wreck.
William Wigton, 27, was booked into the Orange County jail on Monday.
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Troopers said Wigton is responsible for a December 2020 crash along State Road 50, near the intersection with South Tanner Road, that killed Imtaz Roopnarine, who love ones knew as Taz.
Those loved ones said the arrest brings them closer to closure, but nothing will bring him back.
Investigators said Wigton was traveling east in a silver Ford Mustang when he slammed into the back of a tan Jeep Wrangler. Roopnarine, 51, was a passenger in the Wrangler and died in the crash, troopers said. The driver of the SUV was seriously hurt.
Raffy Harrison said Taz Roopnarine and his wife, Glenda, had just left his house before the crash. He heard the sound of the impact from his home close by. Harrison rushed to the scene at Colonial and South Tanner roads where he spent some of the last moments of Taz’s life by his side.
“I opened the door and I spoke to him,” Harrison said. “I was like, ‘Hey, are you OK?’ His breath wasn’t there.”
The wreck damaged two additional vehicles as well, including a tractor-trailer, records show.
Troopers said the event recorder in the Mustang showed that the car was traveling at 119 mph at the time of the crash and was at a speed of 149.3 mph just five seconds prior. The posted speed limit in the area is 55 mph.
NEW TODAY: Court records obtained by @news6wkmg show Florida Highway Patrol have arrested a 27-year-old man after a deadly dui crash on SR 50 in Dec. 2020. An arrest affidavit for William Wigton states he was going nearly 150mph in his Ford Mustang seconds before the crash. pic.twitter.com/SmEaBpytTA
— Catherine Silver (@CatSilverTV) August 16, 2022
Investigators said they met with Wigton at the hospital after the crash, describing him as having slurred speech and smelling of alcohol. Troopers said his blood alcohol content was tested and showed to be at 0.109, over the legal limit of 0.08.
Wigton’s DNA was matched to blood found on the driver’s side airbag of the Mustang, showing that he was behind the wheel at the time of the crash, according to the affidavit for an arrest warrant.
The victim’s nephew, Bryan Sinanan, said this all happened less than two weeks before Christmas, adding to the devastation.
“My cousins, his daughters, they still had gifts underneath the Christmas tree,” said Sinanan, adding that his uncle came to the U.S. from Trinidad at 15 years old to build a life for his family.
Now, he leaves behind two daughters, a son and a wife who are all heartbroken.
“We have never been able to put the pieces back together, so it’s just an ongoing process that we’ve been trying to survive for the past... almost two years,” Sinanan said. “This is just bringing everything right back up.”
Wigton faces charges of vehicular homicide, DUI manslaughter, reckless driving causing serious bodily injury, DUI with serious bodily injury, reckless driving causing property damage and DUI causing property damage.
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