Victims of fiery, fatal crash remembered as promising teens with bright futures

Two teenagers were on their way home from a soccer game when they were killed in a devastating collision earlier this week.

Friends have identified one of the victims as 18-year-old Samir Ali, a recent high school graduate who was about to attend UBC on a full-ride scholarship.

Ali came to Canada as a refugee five years ago and settled in Vancouver’s Strathcona neighbourhood. His family is originally from Ethiopia and he was born in a refugee camp in Kenya. He was the oldest of eight children.

“It's very unfair that it was like the beginning of his life: just graduated high school, he won a scholarship, he was going to achieve a lot of dreams,” said friend Walid Moneeb.

He volunteered at the local RayCam community centre and was a role model to many, said Anas Adhassan.

“He was like a dynamic person who's just everywhere. You find him in the soccer team playing, find him helping in the community,” he said. “He left a great impact on us. As a Muslim community, he was a great representative for this community.”

Friends and a GoFundMe campaign have identified the second victim as Yasbirat Ytatek.

The 17-year-old and his family are also from Ethiopia.

He’s being remembered for his unshakeable passion for soccer, which was inspiring for his teammates.

“Every time I go to the soccer field, he’s up there grinding, grinding every single day, wanting to pursue his dreams in the future. He was a really good athlete,” said Jawad Fawwaz.

Friends said he’s a remarkable person on and off the pitch.

“He's a very nice kid – very kind hearted. Always generous, make people laugh. He was never someone that would cause trouble or cause harm to anyone,” said Brian Rusi.

Ytatek was about to enter his final year of high school, according to the fundraiser.

“Yasbirat was a phenomenal person and will be missed by many people. He was an amazing rugby and soccer player. He was awarded player of the month for his soccer club team in March and recently made the Burnaby District Metro Soccer Men's team, which is a big accomplishment,” the online campaign said.

The Bryne Creek rugby team is remembering the 17-year-old as a “wonderful young man with a world of potential.”

The crash that killed both teens happened Tuesday night.

Metro Vancouver Transit Police officers tried to pull over a white sedan minutes before the collision. They did not say what prompted them to attempt a traffic stop.

A witness told CTV News they saw the white sedan speeding through the intersection at 10th Avenue and 6th Street in Burnaby, just moments before the crash.

The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. is now investigating whether there was a police pursuit and if that played a factor in the collision.

The driver and passenger in the fleeing vehicle have been released from police custody with several conditions, including a nightly curfew, according to MVTP.

They have not been formally charged and are scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 29 for possible charges of prohibited driving, dangerous driving causing death and flight from police.