Federal investigators yesterday zeroed in on the driver of a doomed casino bus, as his excuse for the deadly Bronx crash appeared to fall apart.
Ophadell Williams — who was behind the wheel of the World Wide Tours bus that crashed on its way home from Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun early Saturday, killing 14 — had told authorities that he was “clipped” by a tractor-trailer before the crash.
But law-enforcement sources said investigators had spoken with the trucker, who denied the bus driver’s version of what happened.
PHOTOS: 14 DEAD IN BLOODY BRONX BUS CRASH
“[The trucker] said the guy was driving erratically, all over the road, when he finally swerved off,” a source said.
Probers also found no marks on the truck to verify any contact with the bus, the sources said.
In addition, another driver of a car in front of the bus said the bus driver was “all over the road,” a source said.
Williams, 40, was released late last night from St. Barnabas Hospital.
A State Police and National Transportation Safety Board investigation into the horrific crash is under way, with an examination including study of the black box from the bus that would have indicated how fast it was going when it crashed at 5:30 a.m. Saturday.
Federal records have shown that World Wide buses were inspected 26 times over the last two years, with five violations related to fatigued driving issued in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut.
There were two crashes with injuries — on Oct. 24, 2009, in Westchester and last June in Perth Amboy, NJ, with one person injured in each. World Wide had no serious violations over the last 24 months.
Additional reporting by Alexis Jeffries and with