A driver responsible for a high-speed crash that killed a man in Alexandria, Virginia, last year was sentenced to 10 years in prison, officials said Monday.
Carlos McKethan hit 110 mph on Duke Street as he passed a bus, the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Alexandria said. He crashed into a car driven by Bizuayehu Bulti, an immigrant who was expecting his second child and helped support family members in Ethiopia, as News4 reported. Bulti was 39.
Bulti was headed home from work at Virginia Hospital Center late the night of Feb. 22, 2022 and stopped at a red light on eastbound Duke Street near South Quaker Lane, prosecutors said. McKethan passed a bus, ran a red light, swerved into oncoming traffic and hit the back of Bulti’s car. The force of the crash pushed Bulti’s car into another car. McKethan’s SUV then hit two other cars that were stopped at another red light.
Bulti was pronounced dead, four other people were hurt and five cars were totaled.
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Bulti, a Fairfax County resident, was an “exemplary person,” a family friend told News4. He was loving, hard-working and disciplined, and took online classes in his free time.
The event data recorder in McKethan’s SUV showed that he was driving about 110 mph, prosecutors said. Analysis of his blood showed PCP.
McKethan, 45, pleaded guilty last week to aggravated involuntary manslaughter and driving under the influence.
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He was sentenced to 20 years with all but 10 years suspended. He’s set to be on probation for five years upon his release, with his driver’s license revoked indefinitely.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Bryan Porter called the crash a tragedy and the sentence significant.
“This significant sentence imposed in this case holds the defendant accountable for his extremely reckless actions. PCP is a dangerous drug, and the combination of drug use and immense speed caused a tragedy in this case," he said in a statement. "My thoughts are with Mr. Bulti’s family and with the other citizens who were injured as a result of the defendant’s crimes."
