UPDATE JUNE 25:

In an incident report released on Wednesday, Jonesboro Police said street racing may have been a factor in Tuesday’s fatal wreck.

In the report, officer Jeremy White said he was traveling south on I-555 when he noticed two vehicles traveling at a high rate of speed and passing vehicles on the inside shoulder.

“Both vehicles were traveling at what I estimate to be over 100 mph,” White wrote in his report. “From my point of view, it appeared to be a blue Dodge Challenger and a Mustang, both throwing up clouds of dust as they drove in the rocks in the median.”

Upon seeing what he described as “street racing,” White told dispatch to contact Arkansas State Police. Shortly afterward, another officer said via radio he saw one of the vehicles wreck off the highway.

Upon reaching the scene of the accident, White found Laster Sr. lying on his side with his back against the tree.

“The vehicle that the male was in had been split in half with the back half resting in a tree at the edge of the road,” White wrote.

The report said Charlotte Laster had been partially ejected from the vehicle, and both victims were “obviously deceased with no signs of life.”

Previously:

Jonesboro, AR — (JonesboroRightNow.com) — June 24, 2025 — Two people are dead after a car crash on Interstate-555 Tuesday afternoon.

Jonesboro Police Department public information official Sally Smith confirmed to JRN that two fatalities were reported. She added that JPD was on scene to direct traffic, but that Arkansas State Police are investigating.

The deceased are 47-year-old Rodney D. Laster Sr. and 46-year-old Charlotte Laster, both of Trumann, AR. According to an initial crash report from ASP, the wreck occurred at 1:27 p.m. when the Dodge Challenger Laster Sr. was driving “left the roadway and struck a tree.”

Jonesboro E-911 Dispatch reported the wreck at 1:40 p.m. The wreck occurred on I-555 northbound between Dan and Washington Avenues. iDriveArkansas said it was a two-vehicle accident with the right lane affected.

At 3:57 p.m., dispatch said I-555 at Washington was back open.