Luxury, Youth, and Ruin: Lexus Plunges into the River

It’s the kind of scene too tragic—and too senseless—for even the darkest of films. But it happened, for real, on the night of July 8 in Russia. At the center of this grim story: a 19-year-old boy, two 20-year-old girls, and a Lexus LX 570. For the record, the luxury SUV did not belong to the teenager, whose only driving experience was last week’s freshly passed license exam.

The young man secretly took the keys from his parents and invited the two girls and a friend—whose job was to film the whole “thrill” for social media. After all, adrenaline makes for great content.

In the final video, the vehicle is seen hurtling forward at insane speed, unable to brake in time, smashing through a metal barrier, and disappearing into the river. Of the three passengers, none survived.