Francisco Espinal-Quiroz

The Leesburg man arrested in Illinois following a deadly accident last month has pleaded not guilty to two felony charges of falsifying log books.

On July 21, Francisco Espinal Quiroz, 51, was speeding in a construction zone when his semi slammed into a passenger car causing a chain reaction crash that killed four people. Illinois State Police said there was no indication Espinal-Quiroz applied the brakes. (See related)

Espinal-Quiroz was going faster than the posted construction site speed limit and the continued investigation has found that he has a history of traffic violations. A native of Honduras and a U.S. citizen, he has had 12 traffic violations, including three for speeding, since 1991 in Indiana, Florida, Missouri and Texas. Further, Espinal-Quiroz has a driver’s license restriction involving a vision disability.

At a press conference, Illinois State Police Commander Randy Ness said Espinal-Quiroz was driving in excess of 55 mph when he abruptly changed lanes, hitting the car and triggering the chain-reaction crashes.

Authorities said Espinal-Quiroz falsified and failed to maintain proper records and, on the day of the crash, stated that he started his day at 6 a.m. when in reality he started at about 2:30 a.m.

The log book violations filed against Espinal-Quiroz carry a sentence of one to three years in prison, with the possibility of probation. But as the investigation continues, Will County, Ill., state’s attorney spokesman Charles Pelkie told Joliet Patch, additional charges of reckless homicide could still be filed.

Espinal-Quiroz has been held on a $1 million bond since the July 21 accident.