Wekfest management posted a statement condemning the incident.
An overall banger of a Wekfest car show in New Jersey turned sour earlier this weekend (August 28) when, according to Bronx News 12 and eyewitness videos, a BMW Wagon owner, later self-identified as Darius Gomez (@Dawry_Wagon on Instagram,) lost control, hitting at least two people and a pet turtle after peeling out of the New Jersey Convention and Exposition center at the show’s conclusion.
Wekfest New Jersey 2022 marks the show’s return after a two-year hiatus.
Here’s the news report from News 12 including witness videos showing Gomez drifting out of control.
@stoneybobb #wekfest #newjersey #wekfest2022 #crash #wtf #foryoupage #fy #crazy #wekfest #stancecar ♬ original sound – Alejandro 🇲🇽
As is tradition (unofficially and technically unsanctioned by Wekfest,) spectators line the sidewalks and roads near convention center and venue exits to watch participating show cars drive off after show’s end.
This environment incentivizes car show participants driving out to put on a show for attendees often in the form of a burnout, gratuitous revving, or driving off really fast.
As the videos show, Gomez immediately guns it out of the Expo center driveway. Presumably on cold tires, Gomez immediately starts drifting, his front tires not reacting to steering inputs.
His BMW arcs towards the nearest curb, eventually drifting into and hitting spectators.
“Police say two people were hit – a 49-year-old South Plainfield man who suffered a head injury and a 20-year-old West Orange man who hurt his leg. Both were taken to the hospital and have since been released.”
One of the two hit, later ID’d as @TurtleRacr on Instagram, brought a pet turtle with him and was somehow unfortunately injured during the crash.
You can briefly see his turtle in the video he shared after the event.
View post on imgur.com
@TurtleRacr later confirmed earlier today on Instagram stories that his pet turtle succumbed to its injuries.
View post on imgur.com
It reads like Gomez fled the scene of the crime but wasn’t totally hiding.
According to News 12, he later posted to his Instagram that,
“Leaving the scene of the accident was the worst decision I ever made,”
Gomez has since deleted his Instagram and, according to commenters, eventually turned himself in to local police.
Since the accident, Wekfest put out a statement condemning the crash.
“We do not condone this type of behavior and are actively working with local authorities to better understand the events that took place and will be taking necessary steps moving forward.”
