‘Unnecessary loss of lives’: Inquest findings into death of four teens

A coroner has found police officers never engaged in a pursuit of a stolen SUV in Townsville on the night four teenagers were killed in a horror smash.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that the following article contains images and voices of people who have died.

A teenage boy who dangerously drove a stolen car across Townsville, resulting in a horror high-speed smash that killed his four passengers, may have mistakenly believed he was being chased by police.

But a coroner has found that police officers on duty that night never engaged in a pursuit of the stolen Kia SUV, did not activate their lights or sirens and consistently acted in accordance with Queensland Police policies.

State Coroner Terry Ryan on Thursday handed down his findings into the tragic deaths of 13-year-old Barefoot (also known as Lucius Hure-Hill), Rayvenna Tyrone Coolwell, Cayenne Muriel Robertson, both aged 14, and 17-year-old Aaliyah Te Paa.

Coroner Ryan found four children died instantly when they were ejected from the vehicle which disintegrated on impact, striking street signs and a traffic light and splitting in half when the 14-year-old driver failed to negotiate a roundabout while driving at almost 130kmh on June 7, 2020.

Floral tributes left at a Garbutt intersection in Townsville where four teenagers aged between 14 and 18 years lost their lives. Picture: MATT TAYLOR.

The driver was the sole survivor of the crash and managed to crawl from the wreckage.

The court heard upon learning his friends had died, he cried and told police, “I want to kill myself.”

In October 2021 he was sentenced to five years’ detention for dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death.

The inquest considered whether the police who responded to reports of two SUVs, including the Kia, being driven dangerously around Townsville on the night of the crash acted appropriately.

The coroner said Instagram voice memos from Aaliyah’s social media account indicated the children were aware of the police presence on the roads that night.

Floral tributes left at a Garbutt intersection in Townsville where four teenagers aged between 14 and 18 years lost their lives. Picture: Matt Taylor

“There was evidence before the court of voice messages sent from Aaliyah to other associates telling them in an animated voice that the police were ‘chasing’ them,” he said.

The coroner said he accepted the driver held the belief that he was being chased by police.

“However, while it may have been understandable for a group of young teenagers to believe they were being ‘chased’ in the circumstances, that belief was mistaken,” he said.

“At no time did any of the police vehicles activate lights or sirens or signal to (the driver) to stop.

Four teens died after a crash at a Garbutt intersection, Townsville. PICTURE: MATT TAYLOR.

“What he may have thought was an exciting game of cat and mouse with police ended in the unnecessary loss of the lives of his four young friends.”

Coroner Ryan found none of the police units that night engaged in a pursuit of the Kia and that no adverse findings could be made about the officers’ actions.

The inquest also considered concerns raised by the families about how police handle the cultural needs of the next of kin.

“The evidence before this inquest was that there is work being done in relation to this issue,” the coroner said.

The fatal car crash at Garbutt. PICTURE: MATT TAYLOR

He said included developing a guide for operational police and updating the police manual with input from the QPS First Nations and Multicultural Affairs Unit.

Coroner Ryan said he had been advised that by the middle of 2024, all QPS officer will have undertaken cultural capability training, and that the Coroners Court had engaged a Cultural Capability Manager to directly support families.

Originally published as ‘Unnecessary loss of lives’: Inquest findings into death of four teens