A driver who was allegedly more than three times the legal blood-alcohol limit when his ute hit a tree, killing his passenger, has been arrested and charged.
Police said the 28-year-old Mount Barker man was driving a ute on Pyrites Road at Brukunga in the Adelaide Hills on Monday, April 5, when it crashed into a tree about 5:30pm.
A 39-year-old Nairne man who was a passenger in the ute died at the scene.
Police said the driver sustained serious injuries and was taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital for treatment, and was later discharged.
SA Police Major Crash investigators today arrested the man.
He was charged with aggravated causing death by dangerous driving, aggravated driving without due care and exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol.
"Blood samples taken from the driver showed a blood-alcohol level of 0.169," police said in a statement.
The man has also lost his licence for 12 months and will appear in the Mount Barker Magistrates Court on September 1.
