CONCORD, NH — A West Springfield man has been arrested on seven counts of negligent homicide in connection with a crash last week where seven people died.
Volodymyr Zhukovskyy, 23, was arrested at his home in West Springfield around 8:00 a.m. on Monday by the Massachusetts State Police Fugitive Apprehension Unit. Officials said Zhukovskyy was the driver of the truck involved in the fatal accident on Friday in Randolph, New Hampshire.
He was arraigned in Springfield and turned over to New Hampshire authorities.
Connecticut court records show Volodymyr Zhukovskyy was stopped by police in East Windsor on May 11 and charged with operating under the influence.
Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles records show Zhukovskyy was arrested for drunken driving in 2013 in Westfield, Massachusetts.
The Westfield News reported he was placed on probation for one year and had his license suspended for 210 days.
The crash in remote northern New Hampshire involved members of Marine JarHeads MC, a motorcycle club that includes Marines and their spouses.
A pickup truck towing a flatbed trailer collided with the group of 10 motorcycles around 6:30 p.m. Friday on U.S. 2, a two-lane highway in the tiny North Woods community of Randolph. The pickup truck caught fire, and witnesses described a “devastating” scene as bystanders tried to help the injured amid shattered motorcycles.
Those killed hailed from New England and ranged in age from 42 to 62, New Hampshire Deputy Attorney General Jane Young said Sunday. According to the chief medical examiner, each of the seven died of “blunt trauma,” Young said.
The victims were identified as Michael Ferazzi, 62, of Contoocook, New Hampshire; Albert Mazza, 49, of Lee, New Hampshire; Daniel Pereira, 58, of Riverside, Rhode Island; Desma Oakes, 42, of Concord, New Hampshire; Aaron Perry, 45, of Farmington, New Hampshire; and Joanne and Edward Corr, both 58 and from Lakeville, Massachusetts.
The investigation into this matter continues to be active and ongoing.
