Lexington, SC 09/19/2021 (Paul Kirby) - Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher has identified the man who died in a collision on I-26 in the westbound lanes near the 127-mile marker in the Sandy Run area of Lexington County. According to Fisher, this occurred at approximately 1:15 p.m. on Thursday, September 16, 2021.
According to the coroner, John Richard Kotleba, 49, of Alpharetta, GA was traveling eastbound when his vehicle crossed the median, collided with an SUV traveling westbound, and then struck a tractor trailer head on. Kotleba, who was wearing his seatbelt at the time of the collision, was pronounced dead on scene due to the injuries sustained in the crash. The driver of the tractor trailer was transported to an area hospital with unknown injuries.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating the collision.
