A bombshell finding just revealed that a hot-air balloon pilot, who earlier this year crashed in the Arizona desert, killing four passengers, had the powerful anesthetic Ketamine in his system, according to a report.
Earlier this week, two toxicology panels found that the pilot, Cornelius Van der Walt, allegedly had '60 times the threshold' of Ketamine content in his blood, according to the Detroit Free Press. The two panels were conducted by NMS Labs on behalf of the Pinal County Medical Examiner's Office and the other was by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The report also verified that Van der Walt, 37, was not on any prescriptions for Ketamine, nor was the narcotic used in an effort to resuscitate him at the scene.
On Jan. 14, the Kubicek BB 85 piloted by Van der Walt, from Eloy, Arizona, plummeted, killing him as well as three others: Chayton Wiescholek, 28, from Union City, Michigan; Kaitlynn Bartrom, 28, from Andrews, Indiana; and Atahan Kiliccote, 24, from Cupertino, California. Another passenger sustained severe injuries.
At the time, the balloon was carrying 13 people, including eight skydivers who jumped out of the balloon prior to the crash.
"It is important to clarify that the skydiving was intentional and was successfully completed by all skydivers before any issues with the hot air balloon were evident,", as clarified in a statement by the Eloy police.
The balloon was under the operation of Droplyne Hot Air Balloon Rides, which was owned by Van der Walt, and had been crafted in 2011.
