Raleigh man charged after deadly I-87 crash in Wake County

A Raleigh man faces eight charges after a fatal crash on southbound Interstate 87 in Wake County killed Derick Dewayne Wright and injured another person near Knightdale. Investigators say the wreck happened when a 2014 Chevrolet Camaro driven by Wimandre Anton Hendricks ran off the road and struck two people who were outside their vehicles.

North Carolina State Highway Patrol said the crash happened around 6:30 p.m. Sunday near mile marker 11 in the Knightdale and Wendell area. Troopers said Hendricks, 33, lost control of the Camaro before it left the roadway. Authorities said impairment is not suspected, but excessive speed and unsafe tires contributed to the crash.

Court records show Hendricks appeared in Wake County District Court Monday afternoon and was given a $250,000 secured bond. The warrant lists involuntary manslaughter, reckless driving to endanger, driving without a valid operator’s license, operating with unsafe tires, no inspection and an expired registration tag among the charges.

The case puts a sharper spotlight on the kind of warning signs that can sit in plain view before a deadly wreck. The charges tied to Hendricks go beyond speed alone, reaching into licensing and vehicle-safety violations that raise questions about whether earlier intervention could have kept a dangerous car off one of Wake County’s busiest roadways.

The crash also lands on a stretch of I-87 that drivers in eastern Wake County have learned to watch closely. The corridor has seen repeated hydroplaning wrecks, multi-vehicle pileups and lane closures as the Complete 540 project extends the Triangle Expressway by 10 miles to Interstate 87 in Knightdale. For a road already shaped by fast traffic, construction and growth, Sunday night’s crash adds another deadly moment to a section of highway that keeps drawing public safety concern.