A warrant was issued out of Jennings County Circuit Court for Kevin Bell, age 39, Dover, Pennsylvania on charges related to a crash that occurred on September 17, 2016 that resulted in the death of Nikki Reed, age 37, Seymour, Indiana.
During the investigation, troopers with the Indiana State Police-Versailles learned that Bell was driving a vehicle that crashed in rural Jennings County near the Ripley County Line, killing Reed who was the front seat passenger.
On Tuesday, September 20, 2016, Bell left the vehicle and was located by a passerby along US 50 in Jennings County with injuries sustained in the crash.
Trooper Rick Hewitt arrived on scene and spoke with Bell.
Bell lied to Trp. Hewitt about how he sustained his injuries and did not initially tell officers that he had been in a crash or that Reed was deceased inside the vehicle.
After determining that Bell had been reported to be a missing person along with Reed, Trp. Hewitt soon located the vehicle and Reed.
During the course of the investigation, it was determined that Bell was driving on a suspended driver’s license at the time of the crash.
Bell was hospitalized in an Indianapolis area hospital for treatment of his injuries after the incident until being released earlier this week.
Earlier this week, the investigation was turned over to the Jennings County Prosecutor’s Office for review. As a result, a warrant was issued for Bell on charges of:
- Driving While Suspended Causing Death, Level 5 Felony
- Leaving the Scene of a Fatal Crash, Level 5 Felony
- Failure to Report a Dead Body, Class A Misdemeanor
- Driving While Suspended, Class A Misdemeanor
- False Informing, Class B Misdemeanor
Bell has not been re-located or arrested at this time.
An autopsy was completed on Reed last week. The results preliminarily confirmed that Reed’s fatal injuries were sustained in the initial collision. No foul play is suspected in her death at this time.
The investigation is ongoing.
