Almost exactly a year ago, NFL player Dwayne Haskins was struck and killed by a dump truck. Now, a lawsuit claims he was drugged, blackmailed, and robbed before the incident.
On April 9, 2022, the first round pick of the 2019 NFL Draft was killed after walking across the westbound lanes of Interstate 595 near Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood airport in attempts to find gas. A dumbstruck driving across the interstate hit the 24-year-old and his official cause of death was determined as blunt force trauma.
Following an autopsy report, medical examiners determined Haskins has a blood alcohol level of .20 and a .24, triple the Florida legal limit of .08 to drive. He also tested positive for ketamine and norketamine, none of which are legal to use recreationally or medically.
However, a year after his death, his wife filed a lawsuit which alleges that his alcohol consumption was not his fault. The lawsuit alleges that Haskins was drugged in order “to blackmail and rob him causing him and/or contributing to cause him severe injury and death.”
In a statement released by Rick Ellsley of the Ellsley Law Firm, the lawsuit claims “It is believed that Dwayne was targeted and drugged as part of a blackmail and robbery conspiracy. In fact, his highly-expensive watch was stolen from him shortly before his death.”
Attorney representing the Haskins family says the NFL player’s death was avoidable
The lawsuit also discusses Oriel Patino, the driver of the dump truck, and his involvement in the death of Haskins. The lawsuit alleged that the driver was able to see the NFL player and easily could’ve avoided hitting him “had the Defendant operated his dump truck with reasonable care.”
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“The Florida Highway Patrol Traffic Homicide Report shows that Dwayne was only feet away from making it safely across the roadway when he was struck and killed by an old dump truck…Many questions remain as to why the truck driver did not avoid hitting Dwayne given the highly visible activity in the area before the impact and the fact that the other drivers did not hit Dwayne,” Ellsley continued.
He proceeded to point out, “The truck driver’s cell phone records have not yet been disclosed. The report also notes that the driver refused to provide a blood sample to the police at the scene and still has not provided the alcohol test results.”
According to the attorney, the Haskins family believes this lawsuit is an important aspect of “in the process of uncovering the complete truth about this tragedy.”
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