A Garland man has been charged in connection with a vehicle accident that took the life of an Elizabethtown man early Saturday morning, killed when the suspected impaired motorist crossed the center line while traveling on U.S. 701.
John Allen Best Jr., 52, died while traveling north on the highway after a vehicle operated by 20-year-old Jisaiah Pagan crossed over and struck Best’s vehicle head-on. The incident occurred at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, about 2.1 miles south of Clinton’s city limits. Troopers from the Sampson County branch of the North Carolina Highway Patrol responded to the scene.
Pagan, a Garland resident, and his passenger, Christopher Rodriguez, 19, went to Sampson Regional Medical Center. Both were treated for lower extremity injures.
Best did not have any passengers traveling with him. According to reports, Best was operating a 2007 Ford Focus. He lived in Elizabethtown, but was originally from Virginia.
After the collision, Pagan was charged with felony death by a motor vehicle, driving while impaired, driving left of center and not having a valid operator’s license. Pagan was driving a 2013 Nissan Altima.
First Sgt. David Kinlaw said there has been an uptick in incidents involving drivers receiving left of center violations. One of the contributing factors could be distractions, he noted.
“We’re seeing an increase of left of center being a contributing factor to collisions,” Kinlaw said. “We recommend that people stay focused while they’re operating their motor vehicles.”
According to Sampson’s Highway Patrol, Saturday’s accident, which is still under investigation, marks the second fatality of the year in Sampson County.