Four friends were killed in a tragic smash that claimed their lives. A teenage girl admitted to setting up a fake fundraising campaign.
Matthew Parke, 19, Corey Owen, 19, Ryan Nelson, 20, and Jordan Rawlings, 20, were killed when the car they were travelling in collided with a house and burst into flames on the A4 in Derry Hill, near Calne, Wiltshire in August 2020.
Locals were shocked by the death of close friends. Donations flooded in to fund a memorial.
Corey Owen (left), was one of the young men killed in the crash that left their car near Derry Hill. Calne. Wiltshire. Ryan Nelson (right), a man Ryan Nelson’s family called a “ray of sunshine” and that he had ‘lightened everyone’s lives’
Kyle Saunders, 18, created a GoFundMe account called ‘Jordan, Corey, Matt, Ryan Memorial’ and published the fundraiser on local Facebook pages, stating the money would go towards a shrine for the young victims.
A total of £6479.59 was donated to the fundraiser but no memorial ever emerged.
Officers from Wiltshire Police went to Northamptonshire in October to apprehend a boy aged 17 on suspicion of false representation and fraud.
Calne’s four victims, all Calneans, described their families as feeling a profound loss. Jordan Rawlings was among the victims.
After turning 18 years old, the teenager is now able to be identified and appeared before Swindon Magistrates Court.
Saunders of Wellingborough in Northamptonshire has pleaded guilty.
He was given unconditional bail so that he could attend the same court in January to be sentenced.
An order was made for a pre-sentence report.
The house where the car collided with the A4 in Calne, Wiltshire, was covered in scorched grass and had its windows boarded up.
Jason Macdonald 37 (also from Wellingborough and Northamptonshire) has denied the possession, use, or acquisition of criminal property. The case is set to begin on January 7th 2022.
All donations made by kindhearted people to this fake campaign will be returned.
A spokesperson for GoFundMe stated that all donors would be reimbursed.
It is absolutely unacceptable to misuse GoFundMe and we will continue working with the police and authorities on those rare occasions.
Saunders of Wellingborough in Northamptonshire, pleaded guilty. Saunders was granted unconditional bail and allowed to appear at Swindon Magistrates Court (pictured), on the 18th of January, for his sentencing.
As the vehicle they were riding in collided with a house, it burst into flames.
Inquests into the deaths revealed that the vehicle could have driven at 120 mph prior to the accident and Jordan Rawlings was above the legal limit for alcohol.
The VW Polo being driven was driving had its door torn off by the car as it cut through the hedge.
The inquest at Wiltshire Coroner’s Court in July this year heard the desperate attempts by passers-by to try and save the young men.
The passengers of a taxi driver, lorry driver, and taxi driver all reported hearing shouts and screaming coming from the burning vehicle. But, because it was so hot, they had to return.