Detectives yesterday arrested an 18-year-old and a 25-year-old from Canyon Country, California for stealing wrecked Porsche parts from the nearby wreckage of the crash that killed Paul Walker and Roger Rodas. I guess it’s a good thing they don’t live near the site of the zeppelin explosion that killed Nelson Mandela.
The theft occurred as the 2005 Porsche Carrera GT was being towed from the accident scene on Saturday night, Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials said.
Witnesses told investigators that they saw someone driving behind the tow truck that was hauling away wreckage hours after the fiery crash that killed Walker and friend Roger Rodas, who was driving the car and also died.
The witnesses said a man got out of the car when the truck was at a stoplight, grabbed the part, and drove away.
Detectives identified the two suspects, and while serving a search warrant at a home in Canyon Country, a community north of Los Angeles, they found a red T-top roof panel from the Porsche, sheriff’s officials said. They would not say what led them to the two men or what evidence they had against them.
The investigation led detectives to Jameson Witty, 18, who was arrested at his home in Los Angeles and was being held on $20,000 bail, the Sheriff’s Department said in a statement. A second suspect, a 25-year-old man whose name has not been released, was outside California and arranging to surrender, the statement said.
Sheriff’s detectives planned to meet with prosecutors to discuss charges. [THR]
Hmm, so they identified him to the press but haven’t yet filed charges. That’s a, shall we say, interesting strategy. In any case, I’m sure the cyber lynch mob will be quick to demonize these guys, but I sympathize, a little. Last night I was driving through the area where the Walker/Rodas crash took place and I thought about stopping. But then I thought, what am I going to do there? Look for the shrine? Take a selfie in front of it like an asshole? I decided against it, but I can see how one might act on an idiotic, spur-of-the-moment impulse to grab a souvenir before thinking about it. Especially if they lack a certain level of reflection, commensurate with being young and having parents that named them after a whiskey.
Speaking of how dumbasses respond to tragedy, I recently got a tip about this status update vis-a-vis Paul Walker and Nelson Mandela. I find the level of proud dipshittery to be simply sublime:
“Look, you guys, I guess I’m not really sure what I’m even trying to say here, but I think it’s that I’m an idiot and the fact that I can say that is what makes America great.”