Shalaney Velasquez dies in hospital after Easter Sunday crash into back of bus on M5
Police are investigating whether social media was to blame for the fatal Easter Sunday crash in Sydney’s southwest. Shalaney Velasquez, 19, died in hospital on Sunday, a week after the horror crash.
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Police are investigating whether social media was to blame for the freak Easter Sunday crash in Sydney’s southwest.
The red Mazda hatchback was carrying four teenagers before it smashed into the back of a coach stopped in the breakdown lane of the M5, in Beverly Hills, on April 21.
One of the backseat passengers, Shalaney Velasquez, 19, died on Sunday night - a week after the crash.
The other three passengers have been treated at the St George and Liverpool Hospitals for serious injuries.
A senior police source has confirmed to The Daily Telegraph that all of the teenagers’ mobile phones have been seized as part of the investigation.
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“All of the teenagers have had their phones seized and police are looking into whether the driver was on her phone at the time,” he said.
Officers from the Crash Investigations Unit will now analyse the phones to check what time social media was used, and whether this played a role in the crash.
The investigation into the incident has been delayed due to a lack of witnesses and the severity of the injuries to the teenagers which have prevented them from speaking to police.
The driver of the car, Faith Patolo-Vitale, 19, and backseat passenger Lisa Aitoa, 18, were taken to hospital in a critical condition after the incident.
The pair have undergone surgeries in the days following the crash.
The front seat passenger and Ms Patolo-Vitale’s brother, Aliamanu Patolo-Vitale, 18, was not injured as badly as the girls but is still recovering.
Her father posted a heartbreaking video on Friday.
“Shalaney had her second surgery and everything went fine but there is some swelling within the brain. We were informed that if that swelling does not go down in the next 24 hours there is no outcome,” he said.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation with members of the Metropolitan Crash Investigations Unit urging anyone with information to come forward.
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