One or all of the three teenagers killed in a Murrieta crash last Saturday may have consumed alcohol prior to the rollover accident, police said today.
Murrieta police Sgt. Jay Froboese said that during the investigation of the predawn crash, officers discovered evidence that the victims had alcoholic beverages with them, though it remained “unknown if alcohol was a factor in the collision.”
“This will not be known until toxicology reports are received from the Riverside County coroner,” Froboese said. “This will not occur for several weeks.”
Anthony Aleman, 16, Tate Herman, 18, and Kile Kennedy III, 13 — all of Hemet — died at the scene of the 1:45 a.m. crash on Winchester Road, just north of Benton Road.
The trio were in a borrowed 2002 Lexus IS300 and were apparently out celebrating the 16-year-old’s birthday, according to published reports.
Investigators said one witness came forward to report that the Lexus was traveling at high speed on Winchester, going southbound, moments before the vehicle plowed through a guard rail and turned over in a field.
All of the victims were pronounced dead less than 10 minutes later by Murrieta Fire Department paramedics.
It’s unclear who was at the wheel or where the youths had been just prior to the crash.
Police are seeking information from anyone who may have seen the teens or the vehicle between 1:20 and 1:40 a.m. Saturday.
Witnesses were asked to contact Detective Dave Hernandez at (951) 461-6396.
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