Haunting CCTV images show car carrying missing friends before three bodies found
Haunting CCTV images of the car carrying a group of friends ahead of a horror crash which killed three have been released.
Sophie Russon, 20, Eve Smith, 21, and Darcy Ross, 21, were last seen in the early hours of Saturday, having partied in popular bar Muffler in Newport before going to clubbing hotspot Trecco Bay in Porthcawl.
They were travelling in a white Volkswagen Tiguan with two men – Rafel Jeanne, 24, and Shane Loughlin, 32, both from Cardiff, who were also reported as missing.
None of the five had been seen since 2am on Saturday morning, shortly after Darcy and Rafel shared a Snapchat post.
In the desperate hours after they first disappeared family released footage of the car in the hope witnesses would come forward.
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Officers then found the car in the St Mellons area of the Welsh capital at around midnight.
The car is believed to come off the A48 in CardiffGwent Police believe the car was involved in a crash and came off the A48.
They confirmed that three of those who were reported missing have been found dead.
Eve, Darcy and Rafel have been named as those who died - though this has not been confirmed by police.
The surviving two have been rushed to hospital with serious injuries.
Eve SmithEve's sister Lauren Doyle updated a Facebook post in the early hours of Monday to confirm she was among those to have died.
"I will not comment on anyone other than Eve Smith to confirm that she has been confirmed as deceased," she wrote.
"Thank you for your support and shares I won’t be answering messages please allow us some time as a family to digest this terrible news."
Sophie Russon (WALES NEWS SERVICE)A friend of the group, Billys Charlotte, wrote: “Forever young god has gained another 3 Angels please keep all family & friends in your prayers through this hard time god bless RIP Eve, Darcy and Rafel.”
Rafel’s friend Nicola Blackmore described him as a “lovely kid”.
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Family members criticised Gwent Police for what they claimed were delays in launching a search for the missing group.
Shane Loughlin (Media Wales)Sophie's mum Anna Certowicz, 42, was driving around the Gwent and Cardiff areas prior to the discovery in a desperate search for her daughter.
She said police officers told her to "stop ringing" the station for updates.
She told the Daily Mail : "They didn't seem to care. I had to drive to Cardiff to knock on doors myself because they were doing s** all. They just didn't seem to think it was worth investigating. It was so frustrating.
Darcy Ross
Rafel Jeanne"I think they assumed that Sophie was hungover somewhere, but she's a sensible girl who works in a bank and hasn't taken a day off for three years.
"She's not someone who's out clubbing in Cardiff all the time. On Friday nights she's more likely to be babysitting so other people can go out. She wouldn't just vanish like this unless something was wrong."
She added that Sophie, Eve and Darcy have known each other since childhood and are "incredibly close".
The scene on the A48 (Getty Images)The last time Anna spoke to her daughter was on Friday afternoon when she informed her she was going out to a local pub.
Specialist officers are supporting the families of those involved and inquiries are ongoing.
In a tweet, Gwent Police said: "If you can help call us on 101, or send us a direct message, quoting 2300071791.
"The case has been referred to the IOPC in line with normal procedures."
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