A 17-year-old high school football player has taken his own life only hours after leaving a car crash that killed his 16-year-old best friend and left an 18-year-old girl injured.
Tyler Zook from Pennsylvania reportedly ended his life just after midnight on Saturday. Only hours earlier, he left the scene of a car crash that left his best friend Tyreese Smith dead.
Another girl, 18-year-old Amalie Wendt, was injured in the crash.
It is not clear who was driving the vehicle, who belonged to Wendt’s father. Police said that the Hyundai Santa Fe appeared to have been speeding when it veered off into a field and rolled many times.
Smith tragically died of mechanical asphyxia and his death was ruled accidental.
Zook, who was a defensive lineman and offensive lineman in their team, fled the crash scene and ended his life only hours later.
According to reports, both Smitha and Zook worked at a local Sonic Drive-In on East Lincoln Highway. The 16-year-old had been on shift and left at around 11:30 pm.
Smith had completed his sophomore year while Zook had just finished his junior year. They had been friends for almost a decade.
The two were also football players at Conestoga Valley Senior High School.
“Normally, you’d never see one without the other,” Smith’s grieving mother Bernice McKenzie told the Voice, adding that the two were like a ‘comedy show.’
“They were really funny. They were always goofing around and having fun,” she added.
Shocked students at their school shared good memories of the friends.
Freshman Patience Conner said of the two: “They’re hysterical. They could make anyone laugh.”
Sophomore Karyssa Rosa also said: “Tyreese was very funny. He was a really good people person. He liked to talk to everyone and he was always there for everybody. And he was just a good person all around. He was always trying to help other people.”
A memorial has been arranged at the side of the road where the crash happened.
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