West Woodstock — A 26-year-old Bridgewater man has been cited into court after police say he fell asleep at the wheel on Route 4 in February and caused a head-on collision that killed a Plainfield man.

Kenneth R. Hendrick Jr. is facing a single count of negligent operation with death resulting, a charge punishable by up to two years of imprisonment or a $3,000 fine, or both.

“After an extensive investigation, texting, drugs and/or alcohol are not believed to be factors in this crash,” Woodstock Police Sgt. Joseph Swanson said in a news release issued Thursday afternoon. “However, fatigue is believed to be a direct factor in this crash.”

Hendrick allegedly drove across the center line around 11:45 a.m. on Feb. 24 and hit 76-year-old William A. Moeller Sr.’s SUV head-on along Route 4 near Echo Ledge Road in West Woodstock, according to the release. Both men suffered injuries in the crash; Moeller later died at the hospital.

In a telephone interview, Swanson said he has been working on the case for several weeks, and his investigation leads him to believe Hendrick fell asleep at the wheel.

Swanson declined to divulge specifics until an affidavit is filed with the Windsor County State’s Attorney’s Office, something he plans to do next week.

As part of the investigation, authorities attempted to pull information from both vehicles’ event data recorders, or black boxes, but had trouble doing so with Hendrick’s vehicle because of its age, Swanson said.

The recorders typically reveal crash data, including the accelerator percentage and whether or not the brake was applied and at what point before the incident. Not having data from Hendrick’s vehicle didn’t “significantly” impact the investigation, Swanson said, because “the evidence that I’ve been able to collect paints a big enough picture to put together a final report.”

Reached by telephone on Thursday, Hendrick said he had “nothing to say.” He is due in court on May 9.

Moeller’s brother, Robert, of Middletown, Conn., called the situation a tragedy. The family, including William Moeller’s wife, Lauryn, are taking the loss hard, he said.

“My brother, he might have been 76, but he was like a 56-year-old man,” Robert Moeller said. “He was still working; he wasn’t feeble.”

He added: “I understand it is a tragedy. I am quite sure (Hendrick) didn’t want it to happen.”

Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.