A Concord man is in serious condition following a crash on East Side Drive in the city Monday night that resulted in his third drunk-driving arrest since April.
Jackson Rwigema, 37, was driving north when his Honda Pilot struck a tree in the area of 199 East Side Drive about 9:16 p.m., Concord police Lt. Sean Ford said by phone Wednesday. Rwigema was trapped inside the car and had to be extracted by Concord firefighters. He was ultimately taken by ambulance to Concord Hospital where he was admitted for treatment of serious injuries.
Police received a call shortly after 9 p.m. from a witness who reported that the Honda had sped past him and crashed.
“Witness(es) also reported that the Pilot was passing traffic on a double-yellow line at a high rate of speed and drifting off of the road and onto the front lawn of 199 East Side Drive,” Ford wrote in a news release.
Officers are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding Monday’s crash, Ford said, noting the vehicle was totaled.
When Rwigema spoke to police at the scene, he initially gave them a false name using another person’s identification card, Ford said. Police ultimately learned his true identity and took him into custody on a charge of aggravated driving while intoxicated. Rwigema, who was released on personal recognizance bail, is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 13 in Merrimack County Superior Court in Concord.
Rwigema was previously arrested and charged with aggravated DWI on April 20 in connection with a two-vehicle crash in the parking lot of Royal Gardens apartment complex.
He was also charged with operating without a valid license and DWI on July 2 stemming from an incident at the Everett Arena on Loudon Road. Police had responded there for a report of two men who were in the Merrimack River and attempting to tip over an occupied crew boat. The suspects, one of which was Rwigema, were later located in a vehicle.