PRINCE GEORGE COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) – Two teens were killed and another is fighting for his life following an early Sunday morning crash that police said came after officers responded to a shooting at a Prince George County mobile home park.
Prince George County police said officers saw a small SUV leaving the 400 block of Falcon Street at a high rate of speed after responding to the area just after 4:30 a.m. on April 23 for reports of shots fired into a home.
Officers tried to catch up to the SUV before it crashed in the 9800 block of Prince George Drive, striking several trees and overturning before coming to a stop down a steep embankment, police claim.
Police said the driver, identified as a 17-year-old male from Prince George County, and the front-seat passenger, Cortaz Cheatham, died in the crash. Cheatham, of Hopewell, was 18.
A 16-year-old male from Hopewell in the backseat of the car was flown to Chippenham Medical Center with life-threatening injuries and is in critical condition, police said.
Hopewell City Public Schools posted on their Facebook page saying two Hopewell High School students were killed in a crash early Sunday morning.
We are heartbroken by the news that two of our high school students lost their lives in an automobile accident early this morning, and a third student is currently hospitalized. We grieve with our families and community about these lives lost way too soon.
We will have additional staff and grief support at schools on Monday morning.
There are no words that capture how devastated our Hopewell family is with this loss. We ask you to hold these families and our whole community in your hearts and prayers.
Hopewell City Public Schools
Authorities said they found two guns in the vehicle. According to police, officers found one home and an unoccupied vehicle on Falcon Street with bullet holes. No charges have been filed but an investigation is ongoing, police said.
Stay with 8News for updates.
