Two young Florida men died after an early morning car crash May 2 while driving through a roundabout in Gainesville.
At about 12:35 a.m., Kristian Tyler Barker, 20, of Miami, and Matthew Nakamura, 23, of Tampa, were traveling northbound in a 2008 BMW convertible when they struck a roundabout at the intersection of Northeast Ninth Street and Northeast Eighth Avenue at a high speed, Gainesville Police spokesperson Officer Ben Tobias wrote in an email.
Witnesses told police the car went into the air after hitting the roundabout and subsequently struck a tree, throwing Barker — the driver — out of the car. Both Barker and Nakamura were transported to UF Health Shands Hospital, where both were pronounced dead, Tobias said.
Nakamura is a former UF student who last attended the university in 2012, UF spokesperson Janine Sikes wrote in an email.
On May 3, Nakamura’s brother, Joe, and his family started a GoFundMe page to cover costs including a memorial and funeral service. In the span of five days, the family has raised $12,035 of their $15,000 goal. As of press time, more than 200 people have made donations.
Nakamura played on the Gainesville Hogs Rugby team as well as the UF Men’s Rugby Club team, said Todd Streeter, an assistant coach for the university’s team.
“As a player, he was tenacious, strong and skilled,” Streeter said. “He was universally respected by teammates and opponents.”
Stephen Sheehan, a UF alumnus who also played on the university’s rugby team, said Nakamura was more than just a teammate — he was like a younger brother. Sheehan, 25, who used to live with Nakamura, said his friend passed far too soon.
“It’s sad because I think a lot of people kinda saw him as someone who was finally kinda figuring things out, finally getting on the right track,” Sheehan said, “but he was a good guy.”
Sheehan, who currently teaches English and journalism at Everglades High School in Miramar, Florida, said he’ll never forget winning the Southeastern Collegiate Rugby Conference championship during the 2011-2012 season alongside Nakamura. However, above all, Sheehan said he’ll miss Nakamura’s genuine spirit.
“Even though he was a kid at heart, he had a very mature way of looking at stuff,” Sheehan said. “He had a lot of potential.”
