Sokol N. Zuko, 30, of St. Louis admitted he had used heroin and Xanax a few hours before he was involved in a January 2016 crash that killed two men in High Ridge, a probable-cause statement said.
On Aug. 6, Zuko pleaded guilty in Jefferson County Circuit Court to involuntary manslaughter and two counts of drug possession. He is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 12 by Jefferson County Div. 4 Circuit Judge Mark Stoll, according to court documents.
JeffersonCounty assistant prosecuting attorney Thomas Hollingsworth will recommend Zuko be sentenced to 20 years in prison and that one count of manslaughter be dropped. Zuko had initially been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of possession of a controlled substance, court documents said.
Zuko caused a three-vehicle accident at 3:35 p.m. Jan. 15, 2016, while driving a 2001 Honda Accord east on Hwy. 30. He attempted to turn left onto High Ridge Boulevard, pulled into the path of a westbound 2009 Chevrolet Colorado driven by Daniel A. Smentkowski, 84, of House Springs, and the front of the car struck the left side of the pickup, the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported.
The Accord then struck another car, a southbound 2015 Chevrolet Malibu, the report said.
Frederick C. Kelly, 37, of St. Louis, , who was a passenger in the car Zuko was driving, died shortly after the accident, and Smentkowski died two days later at St. Anthony’s MedicalCenter in south St. Louis County, the report said.
There were no injuries reported for Michael S. Klog, 19, of Robertsville, who was driving the Malibu.
Zuko was driving with a suspended license at the time, and he admitted to using drugs before the crash. State troopers also found several pills in Zuko’s pocket that tests revealed were heroin and Xanax, the probable-cause statement said.
Zuko has pleaded guilty to felony possession of a controlled substance at least three times since 2010, and he pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property, also a felony, according to court records.