Aubrey McClendon Crashed at 78 Miles an Hour, Investigation Finds--3rd Update
March 14 2016 - 3:40PM
Dow Jones News
By Erin Ailworth
U.S. shale pioneer Aubrey McClendon hit speeds of 89 miles an
hour just before his Chevy Tahoe slammed into a concrete bridge
earlier this month in a fatal crash, according to a report issued
Monday afternoon by the Oklahoma City Police Dept.
Mr. McClendon's SUV, which was fitted to run on compressed
natural gas instead of gasoline, crossed the centerline more than
60 yards before the crash. He wasn't wearing a seat belt, the
Oklahoma City Police said.
Data recovered from the vehicle's black box showed that Mr.
McClendon tapped his brakes several times before the crash, but
didn't truly brake, a spokesman for the police department said. His
Tahoe hit a concrete embankment at roughly 78 miles an hour.
The Oklahoma City medical examiner's office didn't find any
evidence of a health emergency with Mr. McClendon before his
accident, said Bill Citty, police chief for the department. He
wouldn't speculate on whether Mr. McClendon committed suicide, and
said the police investigation is ongoing.
Police are in the process of checking cellphone records for Mr.
McClendon and talking to friends and associates about his state of
mind and activities on March 2, the day of the crash, and before
the accident.
The day before he died, Mr. McClendon was indicted on a federal
antitrust charge after a lengthy U.S. Justice Department
investigation. The former chief executive of Chesapeake Energy
Corp. was accused of conspiring with a second company to rig bids
for the price of oil-and-gas leases between 2007 and 2012.
Mr. McClendon adamantly denied the charge.
"I am proud of my track record in this industry, and I will
fight to prove my innocence and clear my name," he said in a
statement through his attorney on the night the indictment was
announced.
Mr. McClendon was in his Oklahoma City office early the next
morning, strategizing how to do just that, according to a person
familiar with the matter.
He left the office and at the time of the crash appeared to be
driving back roads north and west through Oklahoma City toward
Arcadia, where he owned a tree farm and a soda fountain.
Write to Erin Ailworth at Erin.Ailworth@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 14, 2016 15:25 ET (19:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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