Bachelor star charged after fatal road crash

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Chris Soules, an Iowa farmer who starred on The Bachelor two years ago, was arrested Tuesday on a charge of causing a fatal accident and leaving the scene.

Soules, who was portrayed as a wholesome country boy looking for love on Season 19 of the ABC reality show, was behind the wheel of a pickup truck that rearended a tractor in northern Iowa on Monday night, Iowa State Patrol said.

The collision sent the tractor into a ditch on one side of the road and Soules’ truck into a ditch on the other side, the patrol said.

The tractor driver was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The patrol identified him as 66-year-old Kenneth Mosher, a farmer from Aurora, about 24 kilometres south of Soules’ farm in Arlington.

Authorities said someone called 911 to report the crash, but they didn’t release the identity of the caller or audio of the call.

Investigators spoke to several witnesses and determined that Soules caused the crash and left the scene, according to a complaint, which doesn’t name the witnesses. Alcohol was found at the scene, and investigators are trying to determine whose it was, said Sheriff Bill Wolgram. Court records show that Soules has committed driving infractions, including a 2006 conviction for operating while intoxicated.

Soules, 35, was arrested in Aurora early Tuesday, about five hours after the crash, and was booked into the Buchanan County Jail on a charge of leaving the scene of a fatal accident, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.

He was released about midday on $10,000 US bond, and will be required to surrender his passport and wear an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet until his trial, jail officials said.

Soules’ lawyers, Sean and Molly Spellman, did not reply to messages seeking comment.

His spokesman, Stan Rosenfield, issued a statement saying Soules “was devastated” to learn that Mosher had died. “His thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Mosher’s family,” said Rosenfield, who declined to comment further.

Soules first drew national attention as a participant in The Bachelorette in 2014, when he tried to win the affections of star Andi Dorfman but was passed over. ABC had him back as The Bachelor the following year.