Engaged couple die hours apart in separate crashes, leaving behind 4-year-old son

EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH, La. (WAFB/Gray News) - Two Louisiana families are trying to find the strength to carry on after a couple were killed hours apart in separate car crashes.

Alexus Lee, 25, and John “JR” Collins, 35, were building their futures together. They had just bought a new house and were engaged with their wedding set for February 2026. But tragedy struck, and they were killed in separate crashes less than two hours apart, WAFB reports.

“I love them. I’m gonna miss both of them, and I’m gonna find the strength to go ahead,” said JR’s father, Arthur Collins.

Louisiana State Police say Alexus Lee lost control of her SUV last Friday shortly after 2 a.m. She crashed into a culvert on Plank Road in Zachary, and the SUV overturned. She died at the scene.

Investigators called JR Collins to tell him what happened, and he headed to the crash scene. On his way there, troopers say he lost control of his car just before 3:45 a.m. and hit a tree on Plank Road just outside the town of Clinton. He was ejected and died at the scene.

Troopers say neither Alexus Lee nor JR Collins was wearing a seat belt.

“Losing Alexus just different. It was a different feeling, and it’s like I know a part of me gone,” said Alexus’ sister, Dominque Lee.

Holding back tears, the couple’s families ed them and the lives that have been cut short. JR Collins’ parents held hands while talking about the couple’s whirlwind romance.

“He loved Alexus, as well as everybody else who knew her. To know her was to love her,” said JR’s mother, Sandra Collins.

Alexus Lee was a recent Southern University graduate who taught at East Feliciana STEAM Academy. JR Collins was a truck driver who loved sports cars.

The couple leave behind their 4-year-old son, Gabriel. Despite the tragedy, their love lives on through him.

“He’s just having a little problem comprehending that we can’t talk to them. We can’t see them, but he understands that they are asleep and are with God,” Sandra Collins said. “The two families will blend, and we will do whatever it takes to give him a good life.”

“I know they left here knowing their child is in good hands, for sure,” Dominque Lee said.

The families are having a t celebration of life for the couple Wednesday morning.

State police say both crashes remain under investigation.

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