Inspector fired for miniature train crash, conductor told cops he knew he was going too fast

(CBS/WSPA/AP) COLUMBIA, S.C. - Matthew Conrad, the man driving a children's mini-train ride that overturned Saturday killing a 6-year-old boy, told police he knew he was driving too fast just before the crash, according to a report released Tuesday.

Conrad, told the officer who accompanied him to the hospital that he "knew better than to drive the train that fast," according to the report obtained by CBS affiliate WSPA.

South Carolina officials say inspector Donnie Carrigan didn't test the train ride and also faked a report about the ride that overturned, killing Benji Easler, and injuring dozens of others, including Easler's parents and siblings, at Cleveland Park in Spartanburg, S.C.

Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation chief Catherine Templeton said Monday the inspector could not have tested the ride because a battery in the train was dead, making it inoperable.

Carrigan has been fired for falsifying documents.

According to CBS affiliate WSPA, Spartanburg County Councilman David Britt said the ride had several test runs before Saturday's crash. The train was in its first day of operation for the season.