A St. Paul man was charged Wednesday in connection with a collision in Minneapolis last month that left an Uber driver dead and his passenger injured.
Emery Winford, 42, is charged with two counts of criminal vehicular homicide and two counts of criminal vehicular operation in the March 16 crash, according to the Hennepin County attorney’s office.
A warrant was issued for Winford’s arrest, and the Hennepin County sheriff’s office later announced that he was arrested Wednesday night at a residence in Brooklyn Park.
Abdishakur Sandiko, 48, died as a result of injuries sustained in the crash.
Sandiko, an Uber driver, was taking a passenger east on Plymouth Avenue North about 9:25 p.m. on the night before St. Patrick’s Day when Winford, driving a Chevy Tahoe, smashed into the side of Sandiko’s black Chrysler sedan, authorities say.
The impact sent Sandiko’s vehicle into an electrical box at the southeast corner of the intersection.
A witness to the crash told investigators she saw Winford’s car speeding and “driving erratically” shortly before the crash, the Hennepin County Attorney’s office reported.
Winford’s blood-alcohol level at the time was just under .17, authorities say. The legal driving limit is .08.
Sandiko was unconscious and breathing when police responded to the scene. He died from his injuries three days later. His passenger sustained broken ribs and needed stitches to treat a wound on his leg.
The passenger told police that Sandiko was looking at his phone at the time of the crash, but reported that the Uber driver had been driving fine before that, according to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office.
Winford told officers who responded to the scene that he consumed one beer prior to the crash, according to the criminal complaint.
When a preliminary breath test indicated his blood-alcohol level was double the legal limit, Winford reportedly attributed the finding to “adrenaline” coursing through him from the crash, telling police that adrenaline can sometimes throw off breath tests.
A warrant was issued for Winford’s arrest after authorities received the results of his blood test, which indicated his blood-alcohol concentration was .169 two hours after the collision, the complaint said.
No attorney was listed for Winford in court records and he could not be immediately reached for comment.
His criminal record includes past instances of driving with a revoked license.