Police have made new arrests following a car crash that killed two siblings, with detectives arresting a man and a woman.
Alina Kauffman, 24, was picking up her brother Ernesto Salazer, 15, from work when they were hit by an allegedly stolen car in Heckenberg, south-west Sydney at around 9.20pm on Friday.
The siblings were just yards from their home when a Mercedes rammed their vehicle into a stationary Toyota Rav 4, flipping their Toyota Echo on its side and killing them instantly.
Accused Mercedes driver Johnson Kokozian, 20, faced multiple charges following the crash and remains in police custody.
Police allege the young father was driving with a disqualified license when he hit the two men before fleeing the scene and leaving them to die.
Alina Kauffman, 24, and her Ernesto Salazer, 15 (pictured together) were killed in a fatal car accident last week
Police have arrested another man and a woman as they continue their investigation into the crash.
Today detectives made a breakthrough in the case: the police arrested a man who was allegedly a passenger in the Mercedes.
Footage shows the man arriving at a police station in the back of a patrol vehicle on Wednesday.
He is not expected to be charged over the crash, but police allege he deliberately withheld information to protect Kokozian.
Kokozian’s girlfriend has also been taken into custody and is expected to be charged with complicity.
The arrests come as Kokozian is due to appear in Liverpool Local Court on Wednesday, charged with two counts of failing to stop and assisting after impact with a vehicle causing death, two counts of driving dangerous driving causing death, negligent driving causing death and driving a vehicle during a period of disqualification.
The siblings’ mother, Angelina Kauffman, has pledged to attend the hearing.
Police believe there were three people, including the driver, in the Mercedes at the time of the crash.
However, none of the passengers will face charges under Good Samaritan laws which state that only the driver of a car must stop or report a car accident.
Toyota Echo driver (pictured), Alina Kauffman, 24, and her brother Ernesto Salazer, 15, were treated by paramedics at the scene but could not be rescued
Police have charged Johnson Kokozian (pictured) over the accident. The 20-year-old denies driving the Mercedes
Ms Kauffman was appalled by the actions of the Mercedes passengers who allegedly left her children to die.
“They just ran and left them, like they were nothing,” Ms Kauffman told 7News.
She also criticized those who decided to film the accident with their smartphones instead of helping her children, telling them “help, do something”.
The lack of charges prompted the state’s deputy premier, Prue Car, to tell a press conference: “If there are gaps in the law, we will be willing to look into them.” »
Lawyer Paul McGirr has hit back at any plans to expand Good Samaritan laws and compel the public to act in times of crisis.
“It depends on what they know, what they saw, their state of mind at the time,” he said.
“Making a law that a person has to perform an act is the gray area.”
About 150 people gathered on Sunday evening to pay their respects to the brother and sister.
Mourners were seen laying cards, flowers and toys at the scene of the road crash during the vigil.
Mum Mrs Kauffman broke down in tears after returning to the scene of the accident on Saturday.
Alina Kauffman, 24, was killed in Friday night’s crash
Ernesto Kauffman, 15, is pictured as the family’s pet
She paid a heartbreaking tribute to her children, describing them as “good people” who wanted to make a difference.
“My babies, they took them from me, my babies,” Ms Kauffman said.
“My kids were going to help people, my kids wanted to make a difference in this world, my kids were good people.
“My daughter, she’s such a beautiful girl, she loves her brother and my son, he loves his sister.
“Now my son is gone and my daughter is gone. My children are gone and I have to live the rest of my life without children, why? I don’t understand.’
Ms Kauffman said Alina was a kind-hearted and dedicated nursing student, while Ernesto was an animal lover who worked at K-Mart and was saving for his first car.
She explained that her daughter had picked up her son from his new job at Kmart and that the two men were almost home when they were hit.
“Alina called me and said, ‘Mom, I’ve picked up my brother, we’ll get some food and then we’ll go home,'” Ms Kauffman said.
“I said ‘it’s ok’ and they said ‘yes mum'”.
A vigil (pictured) has been held for the brother and sister killed in a horror crash when a supposedly stolen Mercedes slammed into their car just yards from their home in Heckenberg
Having not heard from them after 20 minutes, Ms Kauffman and her other child tracked down their location via social media.
The distraught mother said she arrived at the scene just minutes after the crash.
Officers arrested Johnson Kokozian, 20, after he attended Liverpool Police Station on Saturday.
Kokozian denies being behind the wheel, but was charged in the accident and refused bail in Parramatta court on Sunday.
Kokozian reportedly filmed himself eating KFC hours before he surrendered to police.
The Mercedes was reported stolen by Kokozian’s father after police attended his home about an hour after the crash.
Police are also looking for the person who filmed the crash victims dying inside the car before sharing the image on social media.
A six-second video circulated online moments after the crash on Sunday showing the two siblings sitting inside the wreckage.
