14-Year-Old Mother Among Teens Killed in Stolen Car Crash

Efthymis Oraiopoulos
By Efthymis Oraiopoulos
October 28, 2022US News
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14-Year-Old Mother Among Teens Killed in Stolen Car Crash
Ahjanae Harper. (Gofundme/Tru)

A young mother has been identified among the four teenagers who died in a stolen car crash in Buffalo on Monday early morning.

The car crash victims have been identified as Marcus Webster, 19, Swazine Swindle, 17, Kevin Payne, 16, and Ahjanae Harper, 15, the New York Post reports.

They were killed when the stolen Kia they were riding in crashed at about 6.40 a.m.

Ahjanae was the mother of a 5-months-old girl, according to the report. A family member has created a Gofundme page for raising money for her baby daughter.

The 16-year-old driver of the car and another passenger, 14, survived the accident.

Police have charged the driver with third-degree unauthorized use of a vehicle and fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, reported WIVB4. Police said the investigation is continuing, and further charges against the driver may be filed.

“It’s a horrific morning for the families, their friends, our police officers and our investigators and fire department that were there investigating this,” said Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia.

“This is a terrible, terrible outcome for such young kids that had their entire lives in front of them.”

One of the victims attended the Charter School for Applied Technologies (CSAT) which released a letter to parents and students.

“On Monday, an early morning automobile accident claimed the lives of several area teens, including a former CSAT student. Because this student attended our High School up until very recently, we have dispatched additional counselors and social workers to the building.”

The Buffalo Public School District also offered condolences.

“We certainly send our deepest condolences and sympathies to all the families, and everyone impacted by this unfortunate and horrific tragedy,” the school district stated.

The New York Post reported that the teenagers are understood to have crashed the vehicle while trying to complete the “Kia challenge,” a TikTok trend about how to hot-wire Kias and Hyundais.

The stolen vehicle was probably a Kia model without an immobilizer function so that the engine could start, using the technique shown in the TikTok video, reported The Daily Mail.

A lawsuit filed in Orange County, Calif., earlier this year, alleges that Kia cars built between 2011 and 2021 as well as Hyundai cars built from 2015 to 2021 lack immobilizers, making the cars easier to steal.

The lawsuit seeks monetary damages from the automakers and a nationwide recall, The Daily Mail reports.

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