Edited release
12/06/23
Cedar Rapids Police have identified the victims in a fatal crash last week.
A release from the city indicates Police and Fire Department personnel were called to C St SW near Edison Road a little before 10pm Friday for the report of a vehicle accident with trapped occupants and one car on fire. Upon arrival, police, fire and Area Ambulance crews began medical evaluations while firefighters worked to extinguish the fire.
The adult victims in this incident have been identified as 20-year-old Casey Krager of Davenport, 19-year-old Carter Cooper of Bettendorf, and 52-year-old Ruta Tekeste of Cedar Rapids. Also deceased is a 13-year-old male from Cedar Rapids, identified on a GoFundMe page as Tekeste’s son, Bruk Mehari.
The Gazette reports Krager and Cooper had been friends since high school. Krager was a freshman business major at the University of Iowa, while Cooper was studying to be a firefighter at Kirkwood Community College.
The investigation into this incident continues and no further information is available.