DETROIT – Two employees at a car repair shop witnessed the violent traffic crash that killed a 6-year-old boy on Detroit’s west side Monday night.
According to police, a woman driving an SUV with the boy and three other children collided with another SUV near Joy Road and Artesian Street. The vehicle came to rest at Joy Road and Stahelin Avenue.
“The way that it rolled, it was pretty bad. Like, it just bounced," said Mahmoud, an employee at Tony’s Auto Tech. "From far away, I was able to tell the truck was full of people.
Police say the woman ran a red light prior to the crash. She is reportedly the mother of one of the children in the vehicle, and the three other children were friends of her child.
The 6-year-old boy, one of the son’s friends, was ejected from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene. The three other children in the vehicle -- ages 2, 3, and 7 years old -- were transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, officials said.
The woman driving the SUV, along with the man driving the other SUV, were also transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
“It was intense. Like, as soon as I left, it happened right in front of me,” Mahmoud said. “I saw two kids, and one of them was fainted on the floor."
The woman driving the SUV has been taken into police custody and is awaiting charges.
“She should have been more careful," said Ghassan, another employee at Tony’s Auto Tech who witnessed the crash. “I’m sure she didn’t intend to (hurt) those kids, but she made a mistake and that mistake ended up costing. Somebody’s life was wasted.”
Stay with Local 4 and ClickOnDetroit as we provide updates on this developing story.
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