NFL superstar wide receiver Henry Ruggs III is thought to be facing an extended prison term after being arrested on suspicion of 'DUI resulting in death' as footage emerged of the fiery late-night wreck in which a woman died.
Ruggs, who was selected by the Raiders with the 12th pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, has been released by the Las Vegas-based franchise in the hours after the crash which initial reports suggest occurred when a Chevrolet being driven by Ruggs crashed into the back of a second vehicle, a Toyota, at around 3.40am local time.
The ensuing inferno cost the life of an unnamed woman and her dog. Ruggs, who was also injured in the smash, remained at the scene and was taken to hospital for treatment for non-life threatening injuries.
Responding to the scene shortly afterwards, emergency services described Ruggs as being "impaired" with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department subsequently announcing in a statement that Ruggs is to be charged with 'DUI resulting in death' - a charge which carries a minimum two-year prison term, and up to a maximum of 20 years.
A separate reckless driving charge could land him 1 to 6 years in prison, if applied.
It has also since been reported that Ruggs' girlfriend was also a passenger in his car and experienced "serious injuries".
Further information released by police states that Ruggs was driving at a "high rate of speed" before veering into the right lane of a three-lane road where his car struck the Toyota.
Ruggs' attorneys, David Z. Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, have stated that they are to conduct their own investigation into the incident - and have called into question if Ruggs was indeed "impaired" on simply shaken by the effects of being involved in a serious car accident.
"On behalf of our client Henry Ruggs III we are conducting our own investigation as of this writing and ask everyone to reserve judgment until all the facts are gathered," they said.
The NFL also commented, saying: "We will continue to gather facts and monitor the matter under our policies, but our thoughts at this time are with those impacted by this devastating incident."
The Raiders' decision to wash their hands of Ruggs, who has previously declared himself the fastest player in the NFL, comes at a time when the organization is already mired in controversy after taking the decision in recent days to fire their former head coach Jon Gruden after a series of his emails containing grossly offensive and homophobic language were released to the media.
Furthermore, a Las Vegas raiders merchandise promoting Ruggs has also been called into question in the hours after the car crash after the organization marketed the player alongside the term "speed kills" - though it must be stressed that T-shirts bearing the coincidental phrase were not linked in any way to a reputation for disobeying road safety laws, but due to him being regarded as one of the quickest players in the NFL.
Ruggs' apparent indiscretion behind the wheel is all the more unnecessary given the fact that the NFL's players' union, the NFLPA, have a no-questions-asked 24-hour-a-day limo service available free of charge for all active players across the United States.
Also on rt.com NFL star Henry Ruggs to be charged with ‘DUI resulting in death’ following ‘serious’ car wreck in Las Vegas – reports