Police Charge School Bus Driver in Haymarket Crash with Involuntary Manslaughter

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Sheli Paugh

A Prince William County Schools bus driver was charged with involuntary manslaughter as an investigation found her to be at fault in an bus accident that killed one Aldie man, Wednesday. No children were in the bus at the time of the accident.

On May 24, investigators from the Crash Investigation Unit obtained an arrest warrant against the driver of the school bus involved in the fatal crash that occurred in the area of Old Carolina Road and Piedmont Vista Drive in Haymarket on May 23.

"Based on the investigation, and after consultation with the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, the driver of the school bus, identified as Sheli Cheru Paugh , was determined to be at fault in the crash which resulted in the death of a 53-year-old man," said Prince William Police spokesman Sgt. Jonathan Perok.

The accused turned herself into police on May 25 without incident.

Sheli Cheru Paugh, 57, of Loop Road in Front Royal was arrested was arrested on May 24 and charged with involuntary manslaughterHer court date was set for Aug. 14, 2018. Bond is set at $7,500. 

Original Story: 

Eusebio Joya Castro, 53, of Aldie, Virginia, died in an automobile accident Wednesday morning in Haymarket when a Prince William County School bus collided with a landscaping pickup truck.

No children were on the bus at the time. The bus driver survived.

On May 23 at 8:11 a.m., investigators from the Crash Investigation Unit responded to the area of Old Carolina Road and Piedmont Vista Drive in Haymarket (20169) to investigate a crash involving a Prince William County school bus and a 2007 Ford F-150XLT landscaping pick-up truck.

The investigation revealed that the landscaping truck, with an attached trailer, was stopped in the right travel lane on Old Carolina Road just prior to Piedmont Vista Drive. Workers from the truck were preparing to mow and landscape the area property when the vehicle and one of the workers were struck from behind by a 2015 Thomas passenger school bus traveling in the same lane.

There were no students on the bus at the time of the collision. A worker from the landscaping truck, identified as an adult man, was standing near the rear of the vehicle and setting up a sign when the collision occurred. He was wearing a reflective safety vest at the time. The worker was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the landscaping truck was inside the vehicle and was extricated from the cab area by the Department of Fire & Rescue. A third worker from the landscaping truck was able to safely avoid being struck and was not injured. The drivers of the pick-up truck and the bus were transported to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Additional information will be released when available. The investigation continues.

                Identified:

                The deceased worker was identified as Eusebio Joya Castro, 53, of Aldie, VA.

                The driver of the 2007 Ford F-150XLT was identified as a 62-year-old man of Chantilly, VA.

                The third worker was identified as a 41-year-old man of Annapolis, MD.

The driver of the 2015 Thomas passenger school bus was identified as a 57-year-old woman of Front Royal, Virginia.

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