3 killed in Sunday morning crash in Chester County

Three people were killed and another seriously injured in a head-on crash Sunday morning just north of the city of Chester on Saluda Road, officials said.

Chester County Coroner Terry Tinker identified those who died as Anthony “Tony” Lynn Roof, 46, of Chester; Willie James Perry, 76, of Rock Hill; and Sir Lawrence Darby, 53, of Rock Hill.

The driver of a 2006 white Ford van, Joseph Dewayne Knox, 42, was taken by helicopter to Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte.

Charges are pending in the case.

Knox was traveling south on Saluda Road with Roof when his 2006 white Ford van veered off the right side of the road around 12:30 a.m., according to Tinker and State Trooper Joe Hovis. Knox came back onto the road and struck Perry’s red Dodge Ram pickup truck head-on. Darby was a passenger in Perry’s vehicle.

At the wreck scene, debris, including car parts that landed in tall grass down a small hill, littered the side of the road where the vehicles crashed. A couple of prescription bottles, a microphone and other items were scattered near the road where officials labeled the scene with orange spray paint.

Hovis said the wreck is still under investigation.

This story was originally published October 23, 2016 at 8:53 AM with the headline "3 killed in Sunday morning crash in Chester County."