5 Killed Speeding on Private Runway

Jan. 28, 2008 — -- The 18-year-old behind the wheel of a BMW that crashed this weekend, killing five Florida teens, was reportedly online hours earlier seeking advice on how to handle the $80,000 car at speeds of 140 mph and above.

The grisly accident took place around 3:45 a.m. Saturday at the Jumbolair Aviation Estates, an exclusive gated enclave for private jet owners in Ocala, Fla., where actor John Travolta is a resident.

Residents also complained to police about the lack of security at the airstrip, saying teens had been caught sneaking cars onto the runway.

Authorities say Joshua Ammirato, 18, of Fairfield, Fla., snuck his his father's gray 2008 BMW M-5 onto the main runway, with four friends onboard. Police say after racing down the strip, the car flew off an approximately 85-foot-high embankment at the end of the runway. They say the car was going so fast it went airborne for about 200 feet before slamming into a tree.

The car was split in two upon impact, according to the Florida Highway Patrol, ejecting three passengers and partially ejecting the other two.

All five victims were pronounced dead at the scene.

Ammirato likely "braked and turned," said the patrol's Lt. Mike Burroughs, after he either "saw a hazard coming or realized that he was nearing the end of the runway," flipping the car sideways before sending it over the edge.

Burroughs told ABC News he could not speculate on the exact speed of the car at the time of the accident.

All five victims had recently graduated from high schools in the area. James Devon Hime and Dustin Dawe, both 19, had been co-captains of the wrestling team at North Marion High, Kathy Quelland, the school's principal, told ABC News. Ammirato had also been on the wrestling team; 20-year-old Isaac Rubin played football at a nearby high school.

Quelland said the community was "devastated" upon hearing of the accident.

None of the victims was a resident of the exclusive community.

Authorities said it appears Ammirato and his friends entered the compound through a back entrance that gives access to the 1.5-mile-long runway used by residents to land their private planes, according to Burroughs.