Victim's Boyfriend Arrested, Charged In Fatal Crash In Whitehall
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A Pittsburgh man is behind bars, now charged in connection with a crash last month that killed a woman in the South Hills.
Police say 24-year-old Tyler Degraffenreid's car was going more than 100 miles per hour along Brownsville Road near the South Hills Country Club in Whitehall when he lost control.
The crash happened on the night of Dec. 15.
The car went airborne before barrel-rolling through a yard. The black Honda Accord ended up on its roof.
According to the criminal complaint, responding officers found Degraffenreid still in the vehicle. They say he was able to unfasten his seat belt and the first responders pulled him out.
As he was telling them his girlfriend was missing, police say they "detected a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from Tyler."
His girlfriend, identified 23-year-old Victoria Verscharen, was thrown from the vehicle and died.
Following an autopsy, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office said she died of blunt force trauma.
Investigators say she was not wearing her seat belt.
Degraffenreid is being held without bail.
He is charged with homicide by vehicle, homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, DUI, involuntary manslaughter, reckless driving and speeding.
