A Colorado man is facing a murder charge after police say he drove his pickup truck off a mountain road in Wyoming with his wife inside, killing her — and that his phone showed searches for “cliffs near me” and questions about his life insurance policy before the crash.
Forrest Jay Wood, 46, is accused in the death of his wife, Virginia Lynne Wood, 44. According to Cowboy State Daily, investigators say Virginia survived the initial crash on June 3 but died after not receiving the medical care she needed.
An arrest affidavit obtained by the outlet lays out how Forrest Wood was driving a Chevrolet Silverado when it went off French Creek Road near Saratoga. Police say the truck sped up to 57 mph in the roughly 1.5 seconds before it went over the edge, with no sign the brakes were ever applied.
Data pulled from the vehicle allegedly shows the accelerator was pushed to 99% throttle until just a second before it left the roadway.
Investigators counted at least five significant impacts as the truck tumbled down the slope, including one with a boulder, Cowboy State Daily reported. Forrest Wood reportedly told officers he had no explanation for why the truck sped up.
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“I don’t know, we were happy. I don’t know. I really don’t know. I’m sorry. I wish I knew,” he allegedly told police when asked to explain what happened.
A search of his phone turned up queries made before the crash, including “cliffs near me,” “scenic overlook near me” and “am i going to die soon,” according to the affidavit.
Police also say he had searched “what type of life insurance do I have through work” and “do term life insurances have suicide clauses,” as well as looked up other vehicles that had gone off cliffs in the region.
Virginia Wood lived through the crash itself but was ultimately found dead under a bush about 50 yards below where the truck came to rest. Forrest Wood was located alive farther down the hillside, police said.
Nobody found the wreck until two days later, when passersby noticed it and called 911. Investigators say there were no skid marks or tire tracks indicating any attempt to brake.
An autopsy found Virginia Wood had suffered multiple broken ribs and severe chest trauma. A forensic pathologist determined blunt-force injuries from the crash were the most likely cause of death, and the Carbon County coroner ruled it a homicide.
The autopsy also indicated her injuries would not have been immediately fatal. “[Virginia Wood] would have survived the initial crash but would have needed immediate medical care to survive,” the affidavit states.
“It is likely that decedent was carried to the area where her body was found,” police wrote.
During questioning, Forrest Wood reportedly gave shifting accounts, first claiming two other men had been in the truck, then saying it was only one. At one point he allegedly gestured west, saying the man was “over there in his house.” He also reportedly denied that he and Virginia were married.
Officers at the scene noted that Forrest Wood was “either not being honest or was very disoriented” and stopped questioning him.
He was arrested Tuesday by police in Fort Collins, Colorado, and now faces a first-degree murder charge. He is awaiting transfer to Carbon County, Wyoming, to face prosecution.
