HOPEWELL, Va. -- Students and staff at schools in multiple Tri-Cities communities are mourning the loss of two students as police continue their investigations into what happened.
Cortaz Cheatham, 18, of Hopewell, and a 17-year-old Prince George County male were killed and a 16-year-old Hopewell male was hurt when the SUV they were in crashed in Prince George County early Sunday morning. Officers found two handguns in the crashed vehicle, police added.
Prince George Police saw the vehicle speeding along Prince George Drive while officers responded to a shots fired call at a home in the nearby Pine Ridge community.
An occupied home and an empty vehicle were hit by gunfire, police said.
“Pray for our kids, our community, and their families," Hopewell Public Schools Deputy Superintendent Jay McClain said. "We have some students who chose not to come to school today, because of [the deaths] but we’re wanting to be there for everybody who needs it.”
Cheatham was a member of the Hopewell High School football team.
"We have staff and coaches that have been involved in their lives a long time," McClain said.
Grief counselors were at the school Monday to help students navigate the loss.
“We originally set up in the library at the school, realized we needed even more space," McClain said. "Wherever kids are, we’re trying to meet them there."
McClain urged parents need to sit down and speak with their children about the traumatic events and for the teenage students to be there for each other.
"They're peers as much they're family," McClain said. "It’s a time to be together and to grieve and to heal.”
The investigation into the shootings reported before the fatal crash remains under investigation. Anyone with information was asked to call the Prince George Police Department at 804-733-2773, or Crime Solvers at 804-733-2777.
This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
