COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The survivor of a deadly stolen Hyundai crash in Columbus is now in the hospital again after wrecking another stolen Hyundai on Tuesday.
Four people were hospitalized after a city garbage truck collided with the stolen car around 9:30 a.m. near Westerville Road and Albert Avenue. The Clinton Township Police Department said the group was trying to get away from the car’s owner when they pulled out in front of the garbage truck.
The owner of the stolen car had been looking for them and was able to track the group with the Hyundai down to apartments in the area. After they called the police, the car thieves somehow got the hint that officers were coming and then tried to drive away from the apartments, according to the CTPD chief.
The driver, a 14-year-old boy, was the passenger in a previous July 24 wreck that killed two other teens, according to the Clinton Township police chief. In that crash, another 14-year-old named Jayvon Reed lost control of a stolen Hyundai Sonata before striking a city light pole, smashing a fence and rolling several times. He was pronounced dead at a hospital after being pulled out from the wreck.
The 14-year-old involved in the new wreck was ejected in that July crash with another teen named Aaron Wallace Chitson. Chitson died after being ejected, but the other 14-year-old survived.
Investigators for the Clinton Township wreck have not identified anyone in the stolen car as of Tuesday afternoon. However, they said the 14-year-old driver could be facing charges for injuring the other passengers. They also said one of the passengers was a 19-year-old woman, but did not share the age of the other two passengers beyond mentioning that they were children.
NBC4 does not identify suspects under 18 unless police are looking for them, they are being charged as an adult or they have died.
The three minors in the stolen Hyundai, including the driver, were taken to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in stable condition. The 19-year-old woman was transported to Riverside Methodist Hospital in serious, but stable condition.
Both of the cars stolen in each wreck were Hyundais, which along with Kia brand cars have become increasingly popular among Columbus thieves. For a period of time, both brands built models with a vulnerability in the steering column that makes them easier to steal.