Officers reviewed footage from security cameras to determine if the car may have been racing, but it apparently was not, said major accidents investigator Elliott Musial.



"It appears to be a high-speed crash. It appears to be a loss of control by the vehicle," Musial said at the scene. "In the surveillance video from the store, you see the vehicle come into frame; it's moving at a high rate of speed; it appears to get partially sideways, then crashes into the abutment."



The narrow stretch of road where the crash occurred is notorious for unsafe driving, said Ali Morsy, who works nearby. The BMW wrecked on a short strip of asphalt behind the Brickyard Shopping Center, near the intersection of Wrightwood and Narragansett avenues.



"It would probably be a good idea to close (the road)," said Morsy, who deposited bouquets of flowers at the makeshift memorial. "You do get people that don't pay attention, especially on this turn when they're flying down here."



The crash happened just a few feet from dozens of propane tanks.



"Luckily it did not actually ignite the propane tanks," said Musial, the investigator. "It could have been a much more serious incident."



Rociles and the passenger in the front seat, both of whom died at the scene, were wearing seat belts, authorities said. The three back-seat occupants were not, Musial said. Two of them died at Our Lady of the Resurrection Medical Center.



Itzel Arroyo, 19, who said she knew Rociles and another passenger, carried flowers to the scene. Arroyo said one of the victims had a young child.



"That's messed up," she said. "They liked to have fun, … go out."



Alex Lazaro, 20, also dropped by the site Thursday. He said he was a friend of one of the victims.



"Everybody knew this guy," Lazaro said. "He was one of these fun guys everybody likes to hang out with."



Tribune reporters Peter Nickeas, E. Jason Wambsgans and Mitch Smith contributed.