HENRICO COUNTY, Va. -- Two J.R. Tucker High School students were killed in a weekend crash, high school officials confirmed in a letter to the Tucker community.
"It is with a heavy heart that I am reaching out to you this evening. With the permission of their families, I am writing to let you know about the untimely loss of two of our students, tenth-graders Aiden Schmidt and Joseph "Steven" Castro. The young men were killed in a car accident over the weekend. A third teen was also seriously injured in the accident," the letter read that shared resources designed to help families and classmates process the tragedy.
Virginia State Police say the crash happened at around 11 p.m. on Saturday on the 1200 block of Hockett Road, near Tuckahoe Creek Parkway, Goochland County.
"A 2011 BMW 550i [driven by an 18-year-old] was traveling at a high rate of speed southbound on Hockett Road when the vehicle lost control, ran off the road to the right and struck a tree sideways- which split the vehicle in two," a Virginia State Police spokesperson wrote. "The two passengers in the vehicle, both 16-year-old males from Henrico, died on impact. They were not wearing their seatbelt. [The 18-year-old driver] was transported to the hospital in critical condition. He was wearing a seatbelt."
The crash is still under investigation. Police are not commenting on how fast the car was going at the time of the crash, but said they were traveling "very fast."
Castro's sister called her brother a very sweet boy who loved Chipotle and sports cars.
"[They] were such good friends they both had beautiful souls and lovely personalities. They still had a whole life ahead of them but it got taken away quickly," she wrote on a GoFundMe page. "
On message boards for Schmidt and Castro, former classmates and teachers wrote online messages. One teacher said Castro could "bright a room with his smile," another message saying he had a "kind demeanor."
One former teacher said Schmidt "would be quick to offer a smile and say 'Hey.'" Another message said he was "real and genuine."
School officials said counselors would be available to talk to students throughout the week for support.
This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
