Families Mourn 3 Teens Killed In Pasadena Crash
PASADENA (CBSLA) — Three teenage boys were killed Sunday evening in a vehicle crash in Pasadena.
"My little grandson, he was like a son to me, you know? My baby," said Betty Maciel, grandmother of Nicholas Torres, one of the victims.
According to California Highway Patrol, 17-year-old Andy Bae was driving a 2005 Honda south on Michillinda Avenue, accompanied by two male passengers, 17-year-old Torres and 16-year-old Eric Gullekson. Family members said all three were friends who met about a year ago.
"My nephew had just met them because he had [gone] to school with them recently," said Torres' uncle Jacob Munoz.
At about 8:25 p.m. Sunday evening, police said Bae was driving down Michillinda Avenue south of Foothill Boulevard when he lost control of the vehicle, went up a concrete curb then crashed through a chain-link fence onto an embankment before rolling the car over.
At this time, authorities are unsure what caused the crash.
Bae and Gullekson, both from Temple City, died at the scene, according to the CHP. Torres, who was from Monterey Park, later died at a hospital. Maciel rushed to the hospital but arrived after Torres died.
"My son Jacob called me and he told me that my grandson got into a bad accident," she said. "I called his mother right away and she went right out there to the scene."
Family and friends of the teens gathered to organize a memorial with flowers, candles and tributes written onto the walls of the overpass near the collision. Torres was set to graduate high school later this month.
"He was a really good kid," said Joel de la Torre, the teen's stepdad. "I just want to be here for my wife and the rest of my kids. That's all I could do."
Anyone with information on the crash was urged to call the CHP Altadena Area office at 626-296-8100.
(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
