Teen driver kills sister in crash ... and broadcasts it all live on web
‘If I go to jail for life, you know why’
A TEENAGER who lost control of the car she was driving and crashed, killing her younger sister, was streaming a live video of herself as she drove.
Obdulia Sanchez continued filming as she climbed out of her wrecked car and stood over the dying 14-year-old, saying: ‘I killed my sister but I don’t care.’
The 18-year-old had been broadcasting on popular social media website Instagram as she sped along a California highway apparently without a thought for her safety or that of her passengers – her sister Jacqueline and a 14-year-old friend.
The video showed Ms Sanchez holding her mobile phone in one hand as she rapped along to loud music on the car radio.
But the camera then recorded the moment she lost control of the Buick, veered off the road, crashed through a fence and overturned, throwing both her passengers into a field. But what followed was yet more shocking, even in the appallingly selfobsessed world of social media.
For Ms Sanchez continued filming as she stood over her dying sister, who had suffered horrific head injuries. She told her social media followers: ‘If I go to jail for life, you know why.’ Becoming increasingly hysterical, she said: ‘My sister is ******* dying. Look, I ******* love my sister to death. I don’t give a **** . Jacqueline, please wake up.’
Deliberately addressing her social media audience – Ms Sanchez has more than 7,400 followers on Facebook and Instagram – she continued: ‘I ******* killed my sister. OK. I know I’m going to jail for life, all right, I accept that. I don’t ******* care at all. I love you, rest in peace sweetie. I’m so ******* sorry.’
The crash happened at 6.40pm on Friday on Highway 165 about 200km from San Francisco.
Jacqueline, who would have celebrated her 15th birthday on Sunday, was not wearing a seatbelt. Nor was her friend, who was seriously hurt and in the video could be seen waving for help.
Ms Sanchez, who was wearing a belt, escaped with minor injuries. It is not known whether it was she who alerted emergency services to the crash.
She was arrested at the scene on suspicion of manslaughter and driving while intoxicated, and was being held in custody last night.
Police said they were investigating the authenticity of the video, which family members reportedly confirmed was taken by Ms Sanchez.
The graphic uncensored footage was still available on Facebook last night. Ms Sanchez originally put it on her ‘Instagram Story’ – where it would have been available for 24 hours. But copies were circulated on social media. News sites have run edited versions.
Mary Hernandez posted it on Facebook, where it received around 700,000 views.
‘It was so crazy how desensitized and careless she seemed. Who in the right mind continues to record?’ she said.
Social media companies have faced criticism for not acting to remove disturbing videos, including live broadcasts of murders and suicides.
Facebook has been repeatedly accused of failing to remove graphic and unsuitable content. In April it announced it was hiring 3,000 more staff to monitor posts.
The company was forced to act after an outcry over a number of disturbing incidents broadcast via Facebook Live, its ‘streaming’ service that lets users put whatever they like directly on the network.