TMZ just broke this story: on December 30th, R&B singer and occasion actress Brandy was involved in a four-vehicle crash, ending in one fatality, on the 405 highway, one of the busiest in the US. The accident was apparently caused by Brandy and she is now under police investigation for negligence.

The news agency reports that the pile-up took place in the early hours of morning: Brandy was driving on the slow lane with 65 mph. She did not notice that the cars in front of her had stopped or maybe her Land Rover had a malfunction, and she rear-ended the vehicle in front of her, a 2005 Toyota, thus causing a chain reaction.

The 2005 Toyota, driven by 38-year-old Awatef Aboudinhaj, then slammed into another Toyota driven by a 82-year-old man. By the force of the impact the, 2005 Toyota was sent sideways, careening into the center divider of the freeway and then halting into a different lane, where it hit the vehicle driven by 50-year-old Mallory Ham.

Ham was taken to the hospital with minor injuries but Aboudinhaj was not that lucky. She died the next day from major blunt force trauma. Brandy was not injured at all, but she is now liable to be considered responsible of the tragic accident. She was not arrested at the scene and the police did not find any drugs or alcohol in her vehicle.

Late last night, Brandy's publicist confirmed her involvement in the pile-up, at the same time sending her condolences to the young woman's family. 'Brandy was involved in a car accident December 30, 2006 in Los Angeles where there was a fatality. She wishes to publicly express her condolences to the family of the deceased. Brandy asks that you respect the privacy of everyone involved at this time.', the statement said.

However, TMZ spoke to eyewitnesses and learned that, immediately after the crash, Brandy openly admitted that she was guilty of causing it. 'She got upset, talking about how it was all her fault... she didn't stop, kept saying how she hit the lady. Brandy walked in front of traffic, crossing the lanes of speeding cars, then she did it again. People were honking at her to get out of the road. She was obviously disoriented and highly upset.', the witness said, claiming he tried repeatedly to calm down the hysterical star by telling her it was not her fault and that she shouldn't say that out loud.

For more on this story, keep your eyes on this space.