Private Service Scheduled For 3 Teen Boys Killed In SWR Crash

CORONA, CA — Final respects will be paid next week in Corona to three 16-year-old boys killed in a Temescal Valley crash allegedly caused by an enraged driver who's now facing murder and attempted murder charges.

A private memorial service for Daniel Hawkins of Corona, Jacob Ivascu of Riverside and Drake Ruiz of Corona will be held Wednesday afternoon at Northpoint Evangelical Church, according to church spokesman Tim East.

Sergio Campusano, 18, Joshua Hawkins and Joshua Ivascu, both 13, suffered moderate injuries in the crash; they're now recovering at their respective homes. The house of worship is where "all six boys were actively involved in ... youth ministries and devoted to their faith and families," East said.

According to the California Highway Patrol and the Riverside County District Attorney's Office, Sunday night's crash happened because 42-year-old Anurag Chandra rammed the Toyota Prius the boys were riding in, causing it to slam into a tree.

The boys were having a sleepover Sunday night and decided to pull a prank, known as a "doorbell ditch," at a neighboring Temescal Valley home.

Shortly after 10 p.m., five of the boys piled into the Prius that was parked on Modjeska Summit Road, while another went to Chandra's residence and rang the bell several times, investigators said. The youth then ran to the Prius, which raced away from the location.

"Based on evidence gathered in the investigation, Chandra ... chased after the Prius in his 2019 Infinity Q50," according to a District Attorney's Office statement.

CHP Officer Juan Quintero alleged that the defendant bore down on the Prius at high speed on Temescal Canyon Road, approaching Squaw Mountain Road, and rammed the Prius, causing it to spin out of control and slam into a tree on the side of the road.

Family members told reporters that the boys were fleeing out of fear and were trying to avoid the defendant at the time.

Witnesses followed Chandra back to his residence and alerted CHP officers, who arrested him roughly four hours after the collision.

Chandra was charged Thursday with three counts of murder, as well as three counts of attempted murder.

He made his initial court appearance before Riverside County Superior Court Judge David Gunn, who appointed him a public defender and scheduled his arraignment for Feb. 21 at the Riverside Hall of Justice.

The defendant is being held without bail at the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside. According to court records, he has an unresolved misdemeanor case for alleged battery on a cohabitant and child endangerment.

—City News Service contributed to this report.