June 24, 2009 Truck owner gets 6 years in connection to fiery crash Play video

(NECN: Brian Burnell, Hartford, Conn.) - The man who has become the face of Connecticut's deadly Avon Mountain crash is heading to prison. After four years of legal wrangling, 73-year-old David Wilcox has been sentenced to six years behind bars. He owned the dump truck that crashed, killing four people.

Hartford Superior Court Judge David Gold gave 73-year-old David Wilcox a 10-year sentence, suspended after six years in prison for several counts of manslaughter and assault.

Wilcox's attorney read a statement apologizing to the victims' families after Wilcox said he was too distraught to read it.

Authorities say a poorly maintained dump truck with bad brakes owned by Wilcox's company caused the crash when the driver lost control going down Avon Mountain on Route 44. The truck plowed into 19 vehicles stopped at a traffic signal at the bottom of the hill, killing the truck's driver and three commuters.

*Material from The Associated Press used in this report*