Engaged couple dies in separate crashes; leave behind young son

EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH, La. (WAFB) - Alexus Lee and John “JR” Collins were building their futures together and were engaged to get married. Tragedy took them, and they leave behind their 4-year-old son.

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

Holding back tears, the families of Alexus Lee and John “JR” Collins remember the engaged couple’s lives cut short. His parents held hands while talking about their 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.

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

The couple was set to get married in February 2026. They died overnight last Friday in separate crashes.

State police said Alexus lost control of her SUV and crashed into a culvert and overturned on Plank Road near Lemon Road in Zachary. We are told investigators called JR to tell him what happened. On his way to the crash scene, troopers said he lost control of his car on Plank Road just outside the town of Clinton. He hit a tree, was ejected, and died. Troopers said neither one of them was wearing a seatbelt. They leave behind their 4-year-old little boy, Gabriel.

“He understands what happened, and 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,” said Sandra Collins.

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

Alexus was a recent Southern University graduate who taught at East Feliciana STEAM Academy. JR was a truck driver who loved sports cars. The couple just bought a new home. Despite the tragedy, their love lives on through their son.

“Even though they left a child behind, we have a great support system. The two families will blend, and we will do whatever it takes to give him a good life,” said Collins.

The family is having a joint celebration of life for the couple. It will be held on Wednesday, May 21, at 11 a.m. at East Feliciana STEAM Academy, located at 9414 Plank Road in Clinton, Louisiana

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