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Columbia man killed in Lexington County accident; driver charged with reckless homicide, felony hit-and-run

Incident happened on US 321 near Gaston
Credit: Lexington County Sheriff Department
Royce Kopacz Jr. fled from the scene of the accident and was located around 9:40 p.m. Saturday. He was taken into custody and charged with reckless homicide, felony hit-and-run resulting in death, and felony hit-and-run resulting in great bodily injury.

LEXINGTON, S.C. — A passenger in a fatal car accident in Lexington County Saturday evening has been identified.

The accident occurred around 7:03 p.m. Saturday, September 14, in the 4200 block of US 321, near Gardners Terrace in Gaston. Two vehicles were involved in the crash, according to South Carolina Highway Patrol Lance Corporal Matthew Southern.

A 1999 Ford Expedition and a 2007 Chevy Silverado pickup truck driven by Royce Kopacz Jr, 54, were travelling southbound on US 321.

The truck driven by Kopacz struck the Expedition in the rear, causing the Expedition to run off the left side of the roadway, over-correct and overturn.

Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher said that Jeff Coswell, 49, of Columbia, was the passenger in the Expedition and was ejected from the vehicle during the crash.

Coswell was not wearing a seat belt when the collision occurred and was pronounced dead at the scene from his injuries. The driver of the Expedition was transported to a Prisma Health Richland with non-life-threatening injuries.

Kopacz fled from the scene of the accident and was located around 9:40 p.m. Saturday. He was taken into custody and charged with reckless homicide, felony hit-and-run resulting in death, and felony hit-and-run resulting in great bodily injury.

Kopacz was transported to the Lexington County Detention Center

The South Carolina Highway Patrol is continuing to investigate the incident with the assistance of the SCHP's Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team.

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