The families of two young girls are trying to come to terms with a harsh reality.
Maggie Dunn, 17, and Caroline Gill, were both killed in a crash in West Baton Rouge where an Addis Police Officer was assisting Baton Rouge Police in a pursuit over a stolen car.
Dunn & Gill were best friends and cheerleaders at Brusly High School.
Meanwhile, Dunn’s brother was in the backseat as a passenger and is in the ICU currently.
All of this happened because Tyquel Zanders, 24, allegedly broke into his own parents home on Blackwell Dr. in Baton Rouge on New Year’s Eve, pushed his dad to the ground and then is accused of stealing their car and leading officers on a multi-parish chase.
Zanders’ parent is who called police alerting them of where he was which is how BRPD officers located him on River Rd. near the River Center. That’s when the pursuit began going 80mph on Government St. and 110mph on I-10 leading Zanders and officers into West Baton Rouge Parish onto La 1 southbound.
Addis & Brusly Police joined the pursuit to help BRPD. Zanders then turned around to go back northbound on La 1. When Addis PD was chasing Zanders at a high speed, an officer allegedly t-boned the vehicle that Gill & Dunn were in.
They had just turned off of W. Saint Francis St. onto La 1 when their vehicle was hit.
Both young girls were in the front of the vehicle while Dunn’s brother was in the backseat. The young women died on the scene.
Zanders continued to evade officers and went back over the MS River Bridge on I-10 near the Dalrymple exit where he was eventually taken into custody and booked into the EBR Parish Prison.
He is facing several charges in EBR including theft of a motor vehicle, home invasion, aggravated flight from an officer and bench warrants. Plus, he’s facing two counts of manslaughter in WBR as well as aggravated flight. Additional charges could be pending in WBR.
To help the families, you can dine at Rio Cantina in Brusly on Monday and Tuesday where a portion of all sales will go to the Dunn & Gill families to help with the tragic loss.
So sorry for this family. Sending prayers to all involved. I’m interested to see if this guy had any other criminal record because I think a high speed chase that took two lives is ridiculous because of someone stealing their parents car. So very sad and unnecessary.
What is the name of the addis cop who was not chasing the car theft person, but just trying to catch up to him and be a part of the chase. Become part of the problem. driving his cop vehicle in excess of 100mph? Why is he not arrested and the very least his name be given? He is NOT above the law!
Seriously??? You’re blaming the officer??? He wouldn’t have been there if that thug wasn’t adding to the danger everyone is seeing in EBR. And with outstanding warrants!! For God’s sake Murphy Paul!! Step up & stop this madness. Sharon Broome you should be ashamed to allow this lawlessness to continue while you hide behind your protection.