(Dreamstime)

By Sheldon Spackman

February 2024

Sentencing scheduled for central Alberta man charged in double fatal crash near Trochu

Nov 1, 2023 | 4:43 PM

Sentencing is scheduled next year for a central Alberta man charged in a fatal crash that killed two people last year.

Richard Douglas Bell, 44, of Elnora, AB, is scheduled for sentencing in Drumheller Court of Justice on Feb. 1, 2024.

He pleaded guilty during a preliminary hearing in August 2023 to two counts of dangerous operation cause death, one count of dangerous operation cause bodily harm, and one count of refusing a blood sample.

It was on June 17, 2022, at approximately 10:00 p.m. when Three Hills RCMP were dispatched to a serious motor vehicle collision on Highway 21, just north of Trochu, AB.

Mounties said at the time, their investigation revealed two cars were northbound on Highway 21 when the second vehicle rear ended the first, causing it to drive across the road where it was hit by an oncoming semi-truck.

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According to police, the two occupants of the first car, a 20-year-old female and 21-year-old male, were declared deceased at the scene.

Bell was later arrested and charged by Three Hills RCMP on June 19, 2022.

Related: Elnora man charged in double fatal crash near Trochu

Related: Two people killed in crash near Trochu

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