A 12-year-old boy who died when the car he was driving collided head-on with a truck in Co Limerick shortly before 2am on Friday had driven alone for more than 20km before the collision.
He has been named locally as Wiktor Chojecki, from Newcastle West.
The child was a first-year student at Scoil Mhuire agus Íde in the town where principal Sean Lane said he was popular among pupils and teachers.
“We were all very shocked and upset to learn of the tragedy this morning and it’s very hard for our students to put into words how they are feeling, but there is great sadness and shock amongst all the school community,” he said.
Gardaí plan to examine the child’s phone and social media activity in the event it may indicate why he had decided to make such a long journey from home in his parents’ car in the early hours. They will also speak to his parents, friends and school teachers in a bid to determine if they know of anything that may have influenced his actions.
However, Garda sources stressed while an investigation was under way in a bid to better understand the crash, the inquiry’s main purpose was to inform the inquest process, adding it was not a criminal investigation.
Gardaí were working on the theory that the boy took the Nissan Qashqai for a spin without his family’s knowledge. The boy’s family were described by several sources as “decent” and “hard-working” people. His mother, Ewa, and father, Bartosc, settled in Newcastle West after emigrating from their native Poland.
The child’s body was removed to University Hospital Limerick for a postmortem.
Gardaí have appealed for witnesses and dash-cam footage following the collision on the N21 at Rineroe near Adare.
Emergency service workers used cutting tools to free the boy from the car and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver of the lorry, a man in his 40s, was not injured and was being treated for shock. The boy was the sole occupant of the car.
Parish priest of Adare, Msgr Dan Neenan, who said prayers at the scene, said the local community was in shock. He had been called to the scene at 4am by gardaí . “It was obvious he was dead so I said prayers,” Fr Neenan told RTÉ radio’s News at One.
Fr Neenan remained at the scene until the parents of the boy arrived. “They were obviously so shocked and were incredibly dignified.”
The parents were given a few minutes alone with their son after which they spoke and prayed with Fr Neenan. When leaving the scene the boy’s mother spoke to and thanked all the emergency personnel for their services.
Mr Lane said it was “such a tragic loss and we are supporting our students in the school community today. Our critical incident management plan was implemented where we had our year heads, class tutors and our counsellors in school, working with the students; we also had the NEPS (National Educational Psychological Service) psychologists in the school today to support all students across the whole school who may be affected by the tragedy.”
On Wiktor, he added: “He was very well liked and he mixed well with students and with staff members, and there are a number of staff members who are particularly upset because he would have had chats with them every day. A lot of our students who would have been at primary school with him are also very upset, especially across our first-year group.”
