Man charged in crash that killed 2 teen soccer players near Burnaby New West border

A man has now been charged following a crash that killed two teens near the New Westminster and Burnaby border last summer.

Yasbirat Habtamu Hailu, 17, and Samir Ali, 18, suffered fatal injuries on July 26, 2022, when their vehicle was struck by a white sedan that Metro Vancouver Transit Police said was fleeing a traffic stop.

The teens were on their way home from a soccer match at the time.

“Samir and Yasbirat were really good persons, great friends. They had a really great future ahead of them,” friend and soccer teammate Natnael Dori told Global News last year at a vigil held for the duo.

“(Hailu) was the kind of person that would come when it was sunny, raining, snowy, don’t matter. He would always come here and play together until the lights go out. I really miss him.”

Ali, who came to Canada as a refugee from Kenya, was the eldest of nine siblings, had just graduated high school and was preparing to attend the University of British Columbia on a full scholarship, according to a GoFundMe for his family.

Hailu, a refugee from Ethiopia and the eldest of four siblings, was about to enter his senior year of high school, according to a GoFundMe for his family.

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The crash happened just after 11 p.m. when Metro Vancouver Transit Police officers were on their way back to their headquarters and attempted to pull the sedan over as it was being driven erratically, according to Transit police.

The driver took off instead of pulling over and a short time later, struck the car in which the two teens were travelling. Despite attempting life-saving measures on the two teens, they died of their injuries in hospital, police confirmed.

After crashing into the teens’ car, the driver of the suspect car and a passenger took off on foot, police said, but were quickly found and arrested.

Cory Robert Ulmer Brown, 27, has been charged with two counts of criminal negligence causing death, one count of driving while disqualified, and one count of flight from police.

Brown was on 24-hour house arrest following the incident, police said and is currently in custody on unrelated charges. He will remain in custody until his next court appearance which is scheduled for July 19.

“The profound loss in this investigation was felt by all involved and our thoughts remain with the families and community, as we direct our focus on moving forward through the court process,” Insp. Chris Mullin with the investigation section of the Transit police said in a statement.

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