PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 26: Dwayne Haskins #3 of the Pittsburgh Steelers looks on during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on September 26, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
NFL Quarterback Dwayne Haskins was drugged, blackmailed, and robbed before being hit and killed by a dump truck on a South Florida highway last year, a lawsuit filed by his family claims.
The lawsuit, filed on behalf of his wife, Kalabrya, and his parents, alleges that four defendants drugged Haskins “to blackmail and rob him, causing him and/or contributing to cause him severe injury and death,” according to the Broward County Clerk’s Office.
However, the lawsuit does not include details about the allegations. In addition to the four individuals, the lawsuit reportedly named two restaurants, a golf driving range, and a hotel as defendants, per ESPN.
The suit also alleges that the driver of the dump truck, Oriel Patino, was “driving carelessly” at the time, exceeded the speed limit, and “failed to maintain” the brakes and tires on his truck, but does not claim that he was involved in drugging, blackmailing or robbing Haskins.
Haskins was the 2019 first-round pick of the now-Washington Commanders, who played for the Steelers in 2021.
He was only 24 at the time of his death.
He died of blunt force trauma on April 9, 2022, after he was struck while walking across I-595 West near Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood airport.
Two blood alcohol samples from Haskins showed a .20 and .24, triple the Florida legal limit of .08, per medical examiner reports.
Haskins also reportedly tested positive for ketamine and norketamine.
After training, he went to dinner with a cousin of a Pittsburgh Steeler and went to a club later that day.
“They drank heavily and at some point, they got into a fight, separating,” the Medical Examiner report said.
However, “many questions remain unanswered… as to what occurred in the hours before Dwayne was killed,” Rick Ellsley of the Ellsley Law Firm, who filed the suit, said in a statement.
“As to what occurred in the hours before Dwayne was killed, many questions remain unanswered,” Ellsley stated. “It is believed that Dwayne was targeted and drugged as part of a blackmail and robbery conspiracy. In fact, his highly-expensive watch was stolen from him shortly before his death.”
Haskins’ wife said his car ran out of gas in a 911 call released last April, the New York Post reports.
A medical examiner’s report claims that a “female companion” who was in Haskins’ car on the side of the road told a Florida Highway Patrol that he was also looking for gas.
The suit accuses Patino of “failing to avoid hitting the Plaintiff who was visible and avoidable had the Defendant operated his dump truck with reasonable care.”
“Many questions remain as to why the truck driver did not avoid hitting Dwayne given the highly visible activity in the area before the impact and the fact that the other drivers did not hit Dwayne,” Ellsley said. “The truck driver’s cell phone records have not yet been disclosed. The report also notes that the driver refused to provide a blood sample to the police at the scene and still has not provided the alcohol test results.”
Haskins had starred at Ohio State before being drafted No. 15 overall in the 2019 NFL draft and played 13 games for Washington for two seasons before joining the Steelers.w
