The driver of a Maserati was going an estimated 144 m.p.h. in January when the Italian luxury car slammed into the rear of another vehicle in Bloomfield Township, killing a 53-year-old mother of three, according to newly released police reports.
Gregory Allen Belkin got out of his burning Maserati and laughed as he ran around the other driver’s car, according to Bloomfield Township Police Officer Scott Schuknecht, the first officer on the scene.
“Gregory said he was the driver of the Maserati several times,” Schuknecht wrote in his report. “Gregory said he looked down and looked up while driving, and the vehicle he hit was stopped on the road. I reminded him the other driver was seriously injured and laughing was not appropriate.”
Rhonda T. Williams, 53, who was lifeless in her smashed 2009 Subaru Legacy, was transported to St. Joseph Hospital where she was pronounced dead. She was driving from work to her home in Oakland Township when the crash occurred shortly after 9 p.m.
Belkin, 43, the driver of the 2014 Maserati Ghibli, was arraigned three days after the crash on felony charges of second-degree murder and operating under the influence of alcohol — causing death. He pleaded not guilty and was denied bond.
He’s currently undergoing a competency evaluation to determine if he’s mentally fit to stand trial.
A broken day
In extensive interviews with friends, acquaintances and eyewitnesses, Bloomfield Township police officers were able to map out Belkin’s activities leading up to the moments right before the crash.
From the information they gathered, investigators believe Belkin possibly stopped at two places for drinks on the night of the crash. He drove to his ex-girlfriend’s house to present her with an engagement ring but was turned down, investigators say. He left the woman’s house and quickly made a call to her while driving away, investigators say.
They believe Belkin dropped his cellphone right before the crash occurred. Police say excessive speeds and alcohol were factors in the crash.
According to the data downloaded from the Maserati’s event data recorder, Belkin was traveling at approximately 144 mph seconds before impact. Crash investigators at the scene calculated the Subaru’s speed at approximately 54 mph.
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SOURCE: USA Today; Observer & Eccentric Newspapers, Jay Grossman
