There is no greater pain a parent can experience than losing a child, no matter what their age or the circumstances. It’s positively gut-wrenching. On December 13, 2025, two families in the United Kingdom received devastating news. Trevor Wynn, 17, reportedly died in a car crash, and doctors placed 18-year-old Joshua Johnson under sedation because of the extent of his injuries. Wynn’s family planned a funeral, and Johnson’s relatives did their best to stay positive, hoping he would recover. Neither family expected the police to make a horrible blunder and misidentify their sons in the crash. It’s a mistake that has crushed both families.
According to The Sun, when Wynn awoke from a coma, he asked why everyone was calling him Josh. The boys apparently had similar builds, per the Daily Mail, and the extent of their injuries made it difficult to decipher their faces. A friend of Johnson’s ultimately contacted the police about his concerns.
South Yorkshire Police shared the shocking news on social media. “On Sunday, information came to light which has now led to further formal identification processes, including forensics, to be undertaken. This has confirmed that Trevor Wynn is, in fact, the male in hospital receiving treatment and Joshua Johnson is sadly deceased,” police explained in the news release. “The families and surviving victim, Trevor, will be offered support from specialist officers and additional specialist services.”
The situation has alarmed the community. Many are wondering how this could happen. A source told The Sun that the families are dealing with the news as best as they can.
“They’re still trying to come to terms with the fact it was a different boy and that their son actually died in the crash three weeks earlier,” the source said. “They have so many questions, plus of course instead of praying for Josh’s recovery they’re now grieving for him.”
Johnson’s family released a statement via police. “What we have been through and are continuing to go through is unimaginable. From the moment we were told about the collision in December, ourselves and many loved ones have spent hours in hospital with who we now know to be Trevor,” the statement reads in part, per The Sun. “We never wanted him to be alone. Only those we shared this time with could understand how this went on for so long.”
South Yorkshire Police turned off commenting on Facebook posts due to the “sensitive nature” of the situation and noted that the investigation remains active.
“This has obviously come as a huge shock to everyone and we recognise the additional trauma this may cause. We are supporting Trevor and all the families through this and have engaged specialist agencies to help provide that support,” Assistant Chief Constable Colin McFarlane shared in the news release. “I have also offered to meet with both sets of parents as I am sure they will have many questions, most of which we are not able to answer yet but we are absolutely committed to understanding how this happened so it cannot happen again.”
This is one of those stories that seems too unbelievable to be real. We can’t imagine the emotions both the Johnson and Wynn families have. Nothing like this should ever happen, and authorities must figure out how it did to prevent this kind of heartache from occurring again. We have a feeling this isn’t the last we’ll hear about these families.
