The girls, all aged 13, were dressed in Halloween costumes and carrying bags of sweets when a people carrier ploughed into them as they crossed the road
Three schoolgirls have been killed by a hit-and-run driver while they were out trick-or-treating.
The girls, all aged 13, were dressed in Halloween costumes and carrying bags of sweets when a people carrier ploughed into them as they crossed the road.
Two of the girls were pronounced dead at the scene. Paramedics tried to save the third but she was pronounced dead minutes later.
The identity of the girls, two of who were twin sisters, has not been released but police described their family’s as being “very distraught”.
Chief Carlos Rojas of the Santa Ana Police Department said: “Here is a night where they were supposed to be celebrating and having a good time, and it ends up in tragedy. It’s a horrible situation.”
The street had been busy with children and parents when the incident happened.
The speed limit in the road was 35mph, but it is believed the vehicle may have been more than 60. The girls were thrown 100ft by the force of the crash.
There were no skid marks at the scene suggesting the suspects had not tried to brake.
The suspects fled the scene before abandoning the Honda CRV about a quarter of a mile away in the parking lot of a Big Lots store. Police were led to the vehicle by a driver who followed the suspects.
Officers are searching for two males who are thought to be the Honda’s driver and passenger, which they believe may be stolen
Following the carnage, dozens of people, many still in Halloween costumes gathered at the police cordon, where the girl’s body’s had been concealed under a red tent.
Eight-year-old Brittany Evans was out trick-or-treating with her father when the girls were killed.
Speaking to KTLA , She said the twins had protected her from bullies.
She said: “Last time, someone tried to steal one of my things, and then they just backed off them because they were like, kind of tough.”
Her father Jeff Evans described hearing “a big screech, and a scream” when the girls were knocked down.
