KINGSHILL — Police are investigating a one-vehicle crash on Clifton Hill Road that claimed the life of a man Friday morning.
Angel P. Cruz, 38, of St. Croix, was positively identified by a family member as the deceased, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.
Investigators were called to the scene shortly after 6:11 a.m., when a 911 dispatcher requested that members of the Traffic Investigation Bureau respond to a “one-vehicle collision with major injuries” that occurred on Northside Road in Estate Clifton Hill, according to the VIPD.
A preliminary investigation revealed that the male driver of a blue Ford Escape was at a local bar in Estate Peters Rest prior to the crash, police said.
Sometime after leaving the establishment, Cruz was on Clifton Hill Road (Route 75), heading north at a speed that was not reasonable for the condition of the road, which is under construction, according to police.
“Evidence at the scene, indicated that while the vehicle was heading north, skidded approximately 64 feet then impacted a mound of wet dirt, went airborne approximately 65 feet and landed in the mud on the roof of the vehicle,” VIPD spokeswoman Kishma Chichester said. “The driver was not restrained and was thrown about the vehicle.”
Cruz was removed from the vehicle by Fire and Emergency Medical Services (FEMS); but he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Chichester.
This case remains open and under investigation by the Virgin Island Police Department Traffic Investigation Bureau, St. Croix District.
