Driver killed after car hits trees, splits into pieces near McHenry

A 23-year-old Lake Villa-area man was killed early Thursday in a single-vehicle crash near McHenry, authorities said.

According to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called to the area of West Dowell and West Neville roads at about 1:35 a.m. for a report of an Audi S4 that had crashed into trees.

Deputies arrived to find the driver had been ejected from the vehicle and critically injured, sheriff’s police said. He was taken to an area hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries, authorities said.

A preliminary investigation showed the Audi was clocked on radar traveling 74 mph in a 35 mph zone by a McHenry County sheriff’s deputy, as it traveled eastbound on Dowell toward Neville, officials said.

As the McHenry County deputy attempted to turn around, it appears the driver of the Audi accelerated and lost control of his vehicle, according to the Lake County sheriff’s office.

The Audi was located about 200 feet off the roadway and had split into pieces after striking several trees, authorities said.

The driver’s identity is being withheld pending an autopsy.

The crash remains under investigation by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Technical Crash Investigations Team.