Police in Worcester, Massachusetts, are publicly discussing the details of a deadly crash this weekend, combating what they say are "false narratives" that have arisen in the following days.
Five teens were in a stolen SUV that slammed into two cars Saturday night, police say. One of them — a 13-year-old girl — was killed, and all four others suffered serious injuries.
But as rumors swirled online about the moments leading up to the crash, investigators said they wanted to set the record straight about what exactly happened.
"There have been some false narratives circulating about this crash," said Worcester Police Lt. Sean Murtha. "We wanted to let the public know exactly what happened that night so the families can grieve in peace."
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Social media chatter indicaties there's surveillance video that shows there was a police chase leading up to the crash, and that officers turned around after the accident took place.
Police say while officers did see the vehicle driving erratically, they declined to pursue it. They say there was no chase and no delay in getting to the scene of the crash.
"People were saying that the officer knew about the crash, intentionally turned in the opposite direction — it's 100% false," said Murtha.
Some family members of the teens have been vocal online, challenging the police version of events. But two who came to the press conference Wednesday said they're prepared to wait for answers.
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"We really don't know until we get all the information and see everything, so we're not making any assumptions or jumping to any conclusions," said one of the family members.
