Beckie Dyer, 19, and Johnny De Oliveira, 21, were killed instantly in the crash in Pitt Meadows
A ride home from the Justin Bieber concert Tuesday night turned tragic for a young couple in Pitt Meadows.
Johnny De Oliveira, 21, had picked up his girlfriend, Beckie Dyer, 19, and her friend from the pop performance in Vancouver.
The pair dropped off Dyer's friend, Katie Sheppard, in Maple Ridge and were heading home on Lougheed Highway when an oncoming Toyota skidded across the concrete median, flipped over and smashed into the roof of their car.
De Oliveira and Dyer were both killed instantly, police said.
"Beckie was the type of friend that you could talk to about anything and she would not hold judgment," Sheppard said in an email to The Province on Wednesday.
Sheppard said she and Dyer, who graduated from Pitt Meadows Secondar y, had matching tattoos declaring their friendship.
"She was so caring and outgoing. She loved animals and was always rescuing them," Sheppard said. "I'll miss her more and more each day. My life will never be the same without her. She was truly an amazing girl."
Dyer was active in the Pitt Meadows community, winning awards for her volunteering and fundraising efforts for the Variety Club. She also participated in the Miss Teen Global pageant for a number of years. Her online bio for the event said she wanted to become an operator in emergency communications.
De Oliveira, a Westview Secondary grad, left behind his parents and younger sister.
"He was such a good kid," said his aunt, who did not want her name published. "He liked to go fishing with his uncle and dad.
"Those two were in the wrong place at the wrong time."
Said Oliveira's friends, Jennifer Beane and Justin Watts, also in an email: "John Boy was an amazing guy. We were together practically every day ... Us three have been through a lot and he was just always the bright spirit."
A 23-year-old woman was driving the Toyota, RCMP Cpl. Alanna Dunlop said. She was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Several witnesses reported that the woman was driving aggressively before the collision, just before midnight, east of Harris Road.
TheProvince
