Tragic Street Racing Accident Claims Four Lives in Grand Prairie
Three people died at the scene and a fourth died at a hospital, police said. Anthony Rosales, 17, is in critical condition in the ICU.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas — Four people were killed when a man who is suspected of street racing crashed into their SUV in Grand Prairie on Saturday, police said.
The crash happened around 8:15 p.m. on South Belt Line Road near Kingston Drive, according to a news release from the Grand Prairie Police Department.
Five people were riding in a Chevy Traverse that was heading north on Belt Line. When the Traverse turned left onto Kingston, it crashed with a red Dodge Charger, according to police.
Three people in the Traverse died at the scene and a fourth died at a hospital, police said. A fifth person from the Traverse was in critical condition.
Family relatives have identified the victims as a family of five. The father is Jessie Rosales, Lorena Rosales is the mother, daughter 13-year-old Stephanie Rosales, and 6-year-old son Angel Rosales all died.
The fifth victim in ICU is their son, 17-year-old Anthony Rosales.
“We’re just trying to see if he’s gonna be able to survive and I just want the best for him,” Jessie’s sister Delia Rosales told WFAA Monday. “We cannot believe it. We’re still waiting for my brother to come by. He doesn’t show up,” she said.
She describes her brother as their family’s backbone.
“We were always together. Traveling together. Basically. We were all a united family,” she said.
And says the way this all unfolded, breaks her heart.
“They were in Six Flags, then they went to a Panda Express,” she said.
Police said witnesses reported that the Charger was speeding and racing another vehicle, a Dodge Charger Daytona. The Daytona drove away from the scene after the crash, according to police.
Yvette Acosta was pumping gas nearby when it happened.
“I just heard a real loud bang like a, like an explosion and I saw the vehicles roll twice, two people get ejected and the vehicle just caught on fire so fast,” she said. “I haven’t been able to sleep because uh I hear the screams of the people.”
The driver of the Charger that crashed into the Traverse was identified by police at Jaime Mesa, 20, of Irving. He was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Mesa faces charges of racing on a highway causing death, manslaughter, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and racing on a highway causing serious bodily injury.
Police later found the driver of the Charger Daytona that drove away from the crash scene. Anthony Morales, 22, faces charges of racing on a highway causing death and racing on a highway causing serious bodily injury, police said.
“They’re gone and they’re gone forever. And I know they’re in custody supposedly, but they’re not gonna bring them back,” Rosales said.
A sad truth the Rosales family will have to cope with.