Four Townsville teens killed during horrific crash in a stolen Kia Sorento SUV were not being chased by cops, coroner finds
A coroner investigating the deaths of four teenagers in a “horrific” car crash has made no findings against police but noted a lack of training around sensitivity to Indigenous families at the time.
Lucius Hure-Hill, 13, Rayveena Coolwell, 14, Cayenne Robertson, 14, and Aaliyah Te Paa, 17, were killed instantly at 4.30am on June 7, 2020 in Townsville, north Queensland.
The Kia Sorento SUV the four teens were traveling in was reported stolen and was driven by another 14-year-old boy named QTS.
State coroner Terry Ryan announced his findings in Brisbane on Thursday after four days of hearings in Townsville in late 2022.
Four members of the families of the deceased teenagers attended court via video link.
The Kia Sorento SUV (pictured) in which the four teens were traveling was traveling at a high rate of speed at the time of the crash
Mr Ryan said the Kia was reported to police for honking on the wrong side of the road at speeds of up to 80mph.
“The QTS driver failed to negotiate a roundabout… he lost control and the vehicle struck a traffic light pole (and) disintegrated on impact,” he said.
Mr Ryan said QTS survived but the four other teenagers were ejected during the crash and suffered injuries clearly incompatible with life.
“The (deaths were) caused by the actions of another child. He was a little boy with a significant criminal record,” Ryan said.
He said the teenagers’ deaths had caused immeasurable damage to their families and expressed his sincere condolences.
Police investigations revealed that Ms Te Paa posted recordings to her Instagram account while sitting in the SUV with the phrase ‘we are being chased’.
A police unit had spotted the SUV and followed it from a distance in an attempt to record its license plate number, but officers had not activated their lights and sirens or ordered the driver to stop.
Mr Ryan said the teenagers’ belief that police were pursuing them was understandable, but they were mistaken because officers followed safety procedures and did not pursue as QTS drove away.
“What (QTS) may have thought was a tense game of cat and mouse with the police ended in the needless loss of life for his four young friends,” Mr Ryan said.
The officers tried to protect QTS from seeing the dead teens and tried to comfort him when the ambulances arrived.
“The police officers also suffered lingering trauma as a result of the horrific scene they encountered,” Ryan said.
He found the subsequent police investigation comprehensive and professional.
Some families of the deceased complained that not all close relatives were informed by police about the deaths of their relatives, which affected their traditional indigenous mourning process.
Officers had been trained as recruits in culturally appropriate ways to notify family members but had not participated in a refresher course.
Mr Ryan said the issue is being addressed with additional training and no recommendation is needed.
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