A person has been convicted of murdering three 16-year-olds after, a court docket was instructed, a teen knocked on his door and uncovered his buttocks at him as a prank.
Anurag Chandra intentionally rammed a automotive the boys had been travelling in earlier than the driving force misplaced management and slammed right into a tree in Temescal Valley, Los Angeles, on 19 January 2020.
Chandra fled the scene after the crash.
Three 16-year-olds – Daniel Hawkins of Corona; Drake Ruiz of Corona; and Jacob Ivascu of Riverside – died within the collision, based on the Riverside County coroner’s workplace.
They had been travelling in the identical Toyota Prius as Sergio Campusano, 18, and Joshua Hawkins and Joshua Ivascu, each 13.
The buddies had dared one boy to both bounce right into a pool at night time or play “ding dong ditch”, a recreation generally referred to as knock down Ginger in England however that has many different names within the UK and all over the world.
Chandra, who did not know the teenagers, testified at trial that one of many boys rang his doorbell and uncovered his buttocks earlier than operating away, based on The Riverside Press-Enterprise.
He testified that he adopted the automotive as a result of he feared for his household’s security and wished to precise his anger. He stated he was “extremely, extremely mad” from the prank.
Chandra additionally testified that he drank 12 beers within the hours earlier than the crash, the newspaper reported.
He stated he didn’t plan to crash into the Prius and testified that he didn’t cease after rear-ending the automotive as a result of he didn’t realise anybody had been injured – despite the fact that he admitted below cross-examination that he had been driving 99mph (159kph) earlier than the collision.
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Chandra was convicted in a Riverside County courtroom of three counts of first-degree homicide and three counts of tried homicide.
“The murder of these young men was a horrendous and senseless tragedy for our community. I thank the jury for their verdict. This is an important step toward justice,” county district legal professional Mike Hestrin stated in a press release.
Chandra’s lawyer, David Wohl, didn’t reply to a request for touch upon Friday.
Chandra was already dealing with felony prices in reference to alleged home violence in 2020 when the killings occurred.
Source: information.sky.com”