SALEM, Ore, — The driver Oregon police say fatally struck a man trying to dribble a soccer ball 10,000 miles from Seattle to Brazil for the World Cup has been arrested.
Scott Van Hiatt of Neskowin was arrested Monday on a charge of criminally negligent homicide, said Lincoln City Police Chief Keith Kilian.
Richard Swanson of Seattle planned to dribble the ball for more than a year through 11 countries before reaching Sao Paolo, Brazil, where the opener of the World Cup soccer tournament will be played June 12, 2014.
He was hit from behind by a pickup while walking south along busy U.S. 101 on May 14, just a few days shy of his 43rd birthday. Hiatt stayed at the scene and has been cooperative with the investigation, police said.
Hiatt was indicted by a Lincoln County grand jury last week. He is jailed on $50,000 bail pending arraignment Tuesday, said Lincoln County District Attorney Rob Bovett.
