EXCLUSIVE
The driver behind a triple fatal crash that claimed the lives of his girlfriend and two friends pleaded guilty to driving without a licence earlier this year and was on good behaviour bail at the time of the incident.
Lachlan Stuckey, 21, was driving through Tarago, about 40 kilometres south of Goulburn in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, at about 1.10pm on Sunday when the vehicle left the road and overturned.
His girlfriend Charlie Quinn, 18, his friend Aaron French, 20, and French’s girlfriend Brooke Sorlie, 21, all suffered serious injuries and died at the scene.
Mr Stuckey escaped with minor injuries, was able to exit the vehicle unaided and was taken to Canberra Hospital for treatment and mandatory blood tests. He remains there in police custody.
Now, Daily Mail Australia can reveal that Stuckey pleaded guilty to an offence of hooning (prolonging, sustaining, etc. loss of traction) on January 9 in Nowra Local Court.
Although no conviction was recorded, he was sentenced to a 12-month conditional release order, effective until 8 January 2025.
No charges have been filed over the fatal crash and Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting Stuckey was acting unlawfully at the time of the car crash.
Mr. Stuckey, a car enthusiast, frequently posts videos of himself driving on social media, doing tire burnouts and drifting his vehicle.
Pictured: Charlie Quinn, 18, and Lachlan Stuckey, 21
Pictured: Brooke Sorlie, 21, and Aaron French
In one post, which showed a clip of a man behind the wheel of a car, he wrote: “Driving with friends increases your chances of going to jail by 150%.”
In another video, which shows a car’s tire sparking as the vehicle speeds down the road, the caption reads: “I swear officer I hit a pothole and got two flat tires.”
Daily Mail Australia can also reveal that Stuckey was embroiled in another car-related court matter in 2022, after he and his father retaliated against a man who attacked them with a baseball bat.
According to police facts presented to the court, the victim had become enraged by the sound of Mr Stuckey’s car exhaust and had aggressively approached him in his car.
An argument ensued and the victim eventually drove off in his car and headed home.
However, Mr Stuckey followed him in his car and called his father, who met his son at the victim’s address.
A fight then ensued between the three, and the victim grabbed a baseball bat and used it on Mr. Stuckey.
Mr Stuckey managed to grab the baseball bat and smashed the victim’s car windows before he and his father left the scene.
Lachlan Stuckey and his father, Shane Stuckey, pleaded guilty to charges of unlawful entry, offensive behaviour, damaging property and assault over the matter.
Lachlan Stuckey (pictured), the driver, was the only survivor of the accident.
His girlfriend Charlie Quinn, 18, has been remembered as a “beautiful girl”.
No convictions were recorded for either man and the 21-year-old was given a 12-month conditional discharge order.
Tributes have begun to pour in for the three victims of the crash, all from the Shoalhaven region on the south coast of New South Wales.
A friend said she described Ms Quinn as an “amazing friend”.
“She always had time for everyone, always kind and positive, was loved by everyone and had an infectious smile,” they told Daily Mail Australia.
Another friend said she would be “gone, but never forgotten.”
“You will be with many Char,” they said.
Rest easy, girl. The love I feel for you will never end.
One of Ms Sorlie’s friends said she “always had a smile that brightened anyone’s day”.
“I will always cherish my memories of you, beautiful girl,” he said.
“I love you Brookie Chookie.”
Another friend of Ms Sorlie wrote online: “Fly high you beautiful angel.”
‘Looking up to the sky for you.’
According to social media posts, Ms Quinn left Bomaderry High School around June last year and was pursuing further education through TAFE.
Ms Sorlie, a keen horse rider, graduated from St John the Evangelist Catholic High School in Nowra several years ago.
Photos posted online show the girls enjoying their lives as they go on vacation with their boyfriends, attend music festivals and hang out with friends.
One of the photos posted in December 2021 shows Ms Quinn, standing next to her father, smiling as she holds a newly earned apprentice badge.
“Congratulations, miss,” a family friend commented.
‘The world is yours now, but walk carefully.’
Daily Mail Australia understands the group were travelling back to their home in the Shoalhaven region at the time of the crash.
A woman who was one of the first on the scene said she and other bystanders worked desperately to save the lives of Ms Sorlie and Mr French as they waited for emergency services to arrive.
“They were unconscious. We were doing CPR on them but it wasn’t working. It was horrible,” he told Daily Mail Australia.
The girls died along with a male passenger when the vehicle left the road and overturned in Tarago.
‘A girl was still trapped in the car – the driver’s girlfriend. I can still hear her screams.
‘He was screaming to try to get into the car and get his girlfriend out.’
Special accident investigators are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the crash, including whether speed was a factor.
The tragedy has sparked outrage online as locals criticise the state of the road, which is frequented by freight trucks.
“One of the worst roads I’ve ever driven on. Potholes patched everywhere. It’s been a horror for years,” one person said.
Another added: “The roads are a disgrace. I drive on them a lot and it’s not fair that they are in this condition.”
One woman said there was a concrete slab lying on the road near the accident site, which could pose an obstacle for drivers.
“My family members were the first to arrive at the scene and there was a huge square chunk of concrete on the road that appeared to have caused the accident,” she wrote online.
However, another rescuer told Daily Mail Australia he did not remember seeing the object on the road.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
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