Brother of car crash victim Malachi Parker speaks out

Last week, Wink News broke the story about a horrific crash that killed five people in Estero.

Among the dead was 22-year-old Malachi Parker. He was riding his motorcycle home from church before crashing into an SUV carrying four friends returning home after a night of bingo. All were pronounced dead at the scene.

Now, Malachi’s brother wants to tell the world how special he was.

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Isaiah Parker was more than just Malachi Parker’s brother.

“We did everything together: skydiving, backpacking, like most motorcycle riding like road trips, and we did everything together,” Parker said.

Isaiah, the oldest of five, said the two were inseparable and had a resounding impact on each other from day one.

“When he was about 13, he tried to run away from home. Very briefly, he stepped outside. I walked out. I said, ‘You don’t want to do that. You don’t know what that means for your life,’ and I said, ‘Even if nobody else understands you, I understand you. I’m here for you like I’m your oldest brother, always be here for you,’ and he came, and he wrapped his arms around me, and he just sobbed into my chest. My little brother,” Parker said.

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An unimaginable pain, out of a nightmare that quickly became a reality.

Within the last week, his family gained more closure about what caused Malachi’s death. They said the investigation found that their brother was following the rules of the road. It was an unfortunate case of the SUV and the motorcycle not seeing each other, resulting in a horrific, fiery crash.

Parker said Malachi’s funeral service will take place Monday at the Ocean Church, the place where Malachi was leaving before he died.