Three San Diego residents were killed in a deadly crash yesterday afternoon, and one of the deceased is believed to be CS:GO YouTuber Trevor “McSkillet” Heitman.
The fiery crash was caused by an 18-year-old man driving a black McLaren the wrong way into oncoming traffic on Interstate highway I-805. The McLaren collided head-on with an SUV in the Northbound HOV lane at 100 miles per hour, killing a 43-year-old mother and a 12-year-old girl, according to the San Diego Medical Examiner’s office.
#BREAKING 3 people are confirmed dead in what witnesses are calling a wrong-way crash on Northbound 805. pic.twitter.com/QeMX7NF6H2
— Kristen Shanahan (@kshanahanWDRB) August 24, 2018
One person was seriously injured in the incident near La Jolla Village Road, while eight others were injured at the Governor Drive exit behind the crash site. The person hurt near La Jolla Village Road was trying to avoid the McLaren and flipped, one witness told Fox 5 San Diego.
The debris from the crash was scattered all along the freeway, causing a traffic backup and a detour for several hours, according to several local media outlets. A compilation of images in a Reddit post shows the violent destruction caused by the crash.
It’s still not confirmed by authorities that McSkillet, whose car is linked to the crash, was the driver of the McLaren. San Diego police say that a black sports car similar to the McLaren was spotted at a nearby elementary school, where they sped into a gate and later smashed a school window.
A friend of McSkillet paid condolences to him on Twitter last night. McSkillet has been quiet on his YouTube and Twitter for several months now. His YouTube channel has over 875,000 subscribers.
In June, McSkillet lost an estimated $100,000 worth of CS:GO skins due to his involvement with gambling website CSGOMagic. McSkillet’s Steam account was trade-banned, meaning that the cosmetic items cannot be withdrawn or sold in any way. It’s unclear whether this event led to him “retiring” from YouTube.
This article will be updated as more details are known.
Update Aug. 24 2:30pm CT: A recent VPEsports report revealed that the gate contained the word “Steam,” in reference to Steam developer Valve. Apparent friends close to McSkillet claim that he was pushed to the brink of suicide because of his Steam trade ban. This information is unconfirmed by law enforcement officials.
Update Aug. 24 8:45pm CT: The San Diego Police Department confirmed in a press conference that McSkillet was the driver of the McLaren. The mother and daughter killed in the crash have been identified as well.
Prior to the incident, police were called to Heitman’s residence, where he reportedly hit another car owned by the family. Heitman was also confirmed as the driver who hit the elementary school gate.
