HARRISBURG – The Saline County State’s Attorney’s office has filed felony charges against a 21-year-old Ridgway man in connection with the Aug. 8 fatal crash near Galatia that killed 20-year-old Mattix T. Sandifer of Ridgway.
After a thorough investigation by Illinois State Police, Jacob C. Ahrens was charged with two counts of Aggravated Driving While Under the Influence of Alcohol/Drugs Involving Death (Class 2 Felony), and two counts of Aggravated Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol/Drugs Involving Personal Injury (Class 4 Felony).
Ahrens was driving a pickup truck on Illinois 34, about a mile west of Harco Road, when he drove off the road into a ditch just before 2 a.m. Ahrens and one passenger were airlifted to a regional hospital with injuries. Sandifer was the second passenger and died at the scene.
