Star Trek reboot actor, Anton Yelchin, dies following car roll-away accident
It’s a tragic day for Star Trekkies as confirmations and reports are rolling in (no pun intended) about the sad, premature passing of actor Anton Yelchin, who played Ensign Pavol Chekov in the latest Star Trek reboots from renowned actor, J.J. Abrams. Yelchin was apparently involved in a car accident where his 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee rolled down a hill, hitting Yelchin and pinning him against a security gate.
“The victim was on his way to meet his friends for a rehearsal and when he didn’t show up, his friends went to his house where they found him deceased by his car,” said Los Angeles Police Department spokeswoman, Jennifer Houser, to CNN. “It appears that he momentarily left his car, leaving it in the driveway. He was behind the vehicle when it rolled backward and pinned him to the brick pillar causing the trauma that led to his death.”
Normally, we don’t report much on celebrities, since we’re not TMZ, but Yelchin’s accident has brought some unwanted attention to Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles, who recently issued a recall for 1.1 million cars, including 2014-2015 Jeep Grand Cherokees, over confusing shifters for the ZF-equipped cars. The recall was to replace the shifters after critics and analysts discovered that the shifters for these cars confused their owners, allowing them to accidentally leave the car in Neutral instead of Park. Though, we don’t understand how their shifters are so confusing to the general public, but that’s a discussion for another day.
We’re saddened to report the passing of Anton Yelchin, best known as Chekov @StarTrekMovie https://t.co/dgpY0gSuem pic.twitter.com/EXMCAJsKgx
— Star Trek (@StarTrek) June 19, 2016
According to various reports, Yelchin’s Jeep that killed him could’ve been a car affected by this massive recall, and allegations are starting to arise saying that a recalled Jeep is what killed Yelchin.
FCA reportedly confirmed their involvement with the investigation into this tragic event.
– By: Chris Chin
Source: CNN, AutomotiveNews