Chris Soules didn't flee the accident scene immediately after his truck rear-ended a farm tractor on Monday night, as new details have emerged proving the former The Bachelor star called 911 and attended to the victim first.
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While initial reports may have led people to believe Soules fled immediately after hitting the John Deere tractor, TMZ obtained 911 audio of Soules calling the police and attempting to help Kenneth E. Mosher -- the 66-year-old Aurora man identified as the person killed in the Iowa crash -- before taking off.
In the emergency phone call, the Season 19 The Bachelor star was breathing heavily while speaking to a dispatcher, and he sounded like he was possibly crying.
"I rear-ended a guy in a tractor," Soules told the dispatcher, who later informed police the accident took place one mile north of Aurora on the 1,000-mile block of Slater Avenue on Buchanan County Road W45.
Soules, 35, confirmed the tractor was in a ditch, as was the driver who had been thrown from the vehicle. He said the man was "not conscious" and then informed the dispatcher, "People are coming!"
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Soules said he checked the man's pulse, and when asked whether the victim was breathing, Soules replied, "I can't tell. He doesn't appear to be."
Soules told the dispatcher he didn't know CPR, but he apparently waited for help to arrive.
"There's people here," Soules told the dispatcher before asking people nearby, "Does anyone know how to do CPR?"
Soules also revealed there was blood coming out of the man's mouth before he asked the dispatcher if he could call her back and hung up.
There were no eyewitnesses, according to TMZ, but people arrived at the scene when Soules was present and later identified him to police. An officer can be heard saying in additional police communications audio obtained by TMZ that they believed Soules "took off northbound in a red Duramax truck."
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Sources told the website that beer cans were found inside Soules' pickup truck that was involved in the accident, but it remains unclear if he was intoxicated at the time of the crash. Soules did not sound intoxicated during his 911 call.
Soules was arrested at his house late Monday night, several hours after the incident occurred because he allegedly refused to come out of the home.
Soules was finally retrieved from the house thanks to police obtaining a search warrant, and then the reality TV star was reportedly taken to the hospital where tests were conducted to determine if alcohol and/or drugs were in his system.
Assistant Buchanan County Attorney Jenalee Zaputil had made no mention of Soules' 911 call during his initial arraignment hearing on Tuesday and stated Soules had not contacted authorities about the incident.
"At no point did Mr. Soules come out of the house or cooperate with law enforcement... at any point, in trying to get in contact with them about regarding this individual and this fatality accident," Zaputil told the judge at the hearing.
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There is also speculation the tractor may not have had its lights on. TMZ was informed by a source that the tractor didn't even have lights, however, law enforcement sources say the tractor didn't need to turn its lights on since it was twilight at the time of the crash.
Soules was released from jail Tuesday morning when his mother Linda Soules posted his $10,000 bond at 11:37AM, The Des Moines Register reported.
Hours earlier, Soules was booked into the Buchanan County Jail on a criminal charge of leaving the scene of a deadly crash, according to the Register.
Soules will face a punishable fine of anywhere between $750 and $7,500 and up to five years in prison if convicted.
The investigation will reportedly take two weeks to a month to complete, and until then, it's unclear whether Soules will be charged with vehicular manslaughter.
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Soules is currently under supervision and may not leave Iowa without written consent from the court. Soules will also be subject to electronic monitoring.
A preliminary hearing has been set for Soules, a longtime Arlington resident, on Tuesday, May 2 at 1:30PM.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski