Motor vehicle accidents can sometimes lead to unforeseen results, like the apprehension of suspected criminals. Just hours prior to a fatal car accident in Fairfield, two of the men involved in the crash also happened to be suspects in the murder of five individuals.

In a suburb west of Birmingham, Alabama, a Ford Expedition was struck by a Lincoln Zephyr that crossed into oncoming traffic. As a result of the car accident, a 20-year-old woman in the Lincoln was pronounced dead at the scene.

One witness to the accident reported seeing a male driver flee from the scene on foot, but authorities say they have no other evidence that anyone other than the young woman was in the car at the time of the crash. The investigation is ongoing.

The driver of the Ford Expedition said that she tried to avoid the oncoming car but could not get out of the way fast enough. If their vehicle had been any smaller, the driver said, they would have died, too.

Following the accident, the driver of the Ford Expedition and her passengers stayed at the scene. The woman was questioned by police and says that two of her passengers, were among the three suspected to be involved with the area murders. The individuals suspected of the crime stayed with the driver at the scene. The woman told police that the men did not leave her house until the next morning and could not have been involved in the killings.

The murders in question are said to have happened just hours before the car accident. No charges have been formally filed, but the three suspects are being held in Birmingham City Jail pending the capital murder investigation.

It is unknown at this time what led the driver of the other vehicle to cross into oncoming traffic. Investigators will now move forward in trying to determine if drugs, alcohol or even a health condition led to the fatal crash. It does not appear that any of the other vehicle's occupants were seriously injured in the accident.

Source: The Birmingham News, "Two suspects in Birmingham mass killing involved in fatal crash hours before slayings," Carol Robinson, Jan. 30, 2012