Four teenagers were killed in the early hours of Saturday following a three-vehicle collision along DaCosta Drive in St Ann, according to a police report.
The crash occurred at approximately 2:30 a.m. and claimed the lives of 17-year-old Shantana Leonard, a student of Brown’s Town High School in St Ann; 16-year-old Kenneil Lyle of Iona High School in St Mary; 16-year-old Marcodine Maxwell; and Rajani Abdul, both students of Oracabessa High School in St Mary.
According to the police, Lyle, Maxwell and Abdul were passengers in a Toyota Vitz being driven by Leonard when the vehicle became involved in a collision with two Mercedes-Benz motor cars travelling along the roadway.
Investigators reported that the two luxury vehicles were travelling at a significantly high speed when one attempted to overtake the other. During the manoeuvre, the vehicle reportedly entered the path of the Toyota Vitz, which was travelling in the opposite direction, and collided with its left front section, forcing it into the right lane.
The Toyota Vitz was then struck on its left side by the second Mercedes-Benz, resulting in extensive damage to all three vehicles.
“Passengers aboard all vehicles sustained serious injuries,” a police official said. The four teenagers were subsequently taken to hospital, where they succumbed to their injuries.
However, the circumstances surrounding the crash have taken another turn, with police alleging that the occupants of the two Mercedes-Benz vehicles removed the registration plates before fleeing the scene.
According to the police official, passengers in the luxury vehicles who were not critically injured, including both drivers, reportedly removed the plates attached to the vehicles, along with other items, before escaping.
An investigation has since been launched to establish the identities of the drivers involved in the crash.
The St Ann police are appealing to anyone with information that could assist investigators to come forward as efforts continue to determine the full circumstances surrounding the fatal collision.