TOLEDO, Ohio — The Lucas County Prosecutor's Office on Friday asked to increase the bond of a man charged with driving drunk and killing 30-year-old bicyclist Nicholas Reinhart two weeks ago based on the fear he would flee to Canada.
Kenneth Pegler, 55, was indicted last week on two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, two counts of failure to stop after an accident and one count of operating a vehicle under the influence.
The Toledo Police Department says Pegler drank five shots and two beers at Peppermint Hippo between midnight and 2:40 a.m. on July 30, then stumbled to his vehicle before hitting Reinhart, who was on his bicycle.
According to a motion filed Aug. 9 in Lucas County Court of Common Pleas to raise Pegler's bond from $100,000 to $500,000, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jessica Worley stated Pegler contacted his friend after seeing the crash on the news and told that person that he was going to turn himself in.
"Instead, Defendant went out for alcoholic beverages and did not turn himself in. Defendant fled to a wooded area in the state of Michigan," Worley wrote.
RELATED: Toledo strip club at center of multiple investigations into drunk driving deaths | 11 Investigates
In the document, which asks for Pegler's bond to be modified to $500,000, Worley said that Pegler hid in his trailer in the woods, which he had "packed up." He later turned himself in.
Worley also stated that TPD received Crime Stoppers tips that Pegler planned to post bond and then flee to his family's property in Canada. Tips also indicated he may also flee to other family property in Florida.
In recorded jail calls, Worley said that Pegler stated that he planned "on driving once his bond is posted, despite his license being suspended."
In addition to fears of Pegler running out of the country, Worley also expressed concern regarding his prior history of drinking and driving.
"Pegler has a prior OVI conviction in 2021 and two additional prior lesser-included convictions amended from OVIs," she stated. "Moreover, defendant now has pending felony warrants in the state of Michigan that were filed recently for a prior incident from 2023 where it is alleged that he crashed his vehicle into a home, injuring two people. He fled the scene of that accident."
11 Investigates located that warrant out of Monroe, Mich. The listed charge is failure to stop at a serious personal injury accident, which is a felony. The date of the offense is listed as June 29, 2023. WTOL 11 reported on the same date that a driver took off from a scene on foot in Temperance, Mich., after crashing through a home, injuring two people.
Judge Dean Mandros ultimately increased Pegler's bond to $750,000, which is $250,000 more than prosecutors requested.
Pegler will be arraigned on the charges in Lucas County on Aug. 15.