Taunton River Crash Kills 1 as Divers Search for Second Occupant

Overview

• A car reported traveling at high speed struck a utility pole and guardrail before leaving the road and entering the Threemile River at 396 Winthrop Street Monday night.
• Responders found a white Nissan Maxima in the river with one person inside who was later identified as 24-year-old Alec Ardita of Taunton and pronounced dead at the scene.
• Investigators say a second person was likely in the vehicle and is being treated as missing, prompting continued underwater searches that were suspended overnight because of worsening water conditions.
• Taunton Police, the Southeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council dive team and Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the Bristol County district attorney are leading the recovery and crash probe.
• The pause in dive operations delays recovery of the missing person and underwater evidence collection, and officials say investigators will pursue on-shore work such as vehicle examination, 911 records and witness interviews while dives resume.