Suspected drunk driver arrested after crash kills Covington woman, state police say

MADISONVILLE, La. (WVUE) - A suspected drunk driver was arrested Friday (Nov. 18) after authorities said he caused a head-on highway crash that killed a Covington woman.

The Louisiana State Police said 35-year-old Roy Keys III of Covington was booked with vehicular homicide, DWI second offense, operating a vehicle with a suspended license and driving left of center in connection with the fatal crash just before 6:30 p.m. on Highway 22 near Helen Drive in St. Tammany Parish.

The two-vehicle crash claimed the life of 51-year-old Petrina Lae of Covington, the LSP said.

Troopers investigating the wreck determined that Keys was driving a 2019 Jeep Cherokee westbound on the highway when he crossed the centerline and smashed into the front of a 2018 International tow truck that was eastbound.

Lae, who was in the front passenger seat of Keys’ Jeep, was wearing a seat belt but still sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, the LSP said. Keys and the driver of the tow truck escaped the crash uninjured, police said.

State police said, “Impairment is suspected to be a factor in the crash on the part of Keys.”

A toxicology sample was collected from Keys and will be analyzed while the crash remains under investigation. The driver of the tow truck voluntarily submitted to a chemical breath test which detected no alcohol, the LSP said.

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