New Jersey town mourns 2 girls killed in Cranford hit-and-run as teen faces murder charges
The family of Maria Niotis, one of two teenage girls fatally struck in a hit-and-run in Cranford, New Jersey, spoke after her wake Thursday.
The community has been heartbroken since Niotis and Isabella Salas, both 17, were killed, allegedly by another teen who fled the scene.
The suspect, 17-year-old Vincent Battiloro, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder on Wednesday. CBS News New York confirmed Battiloro was also issued more than a dozen traffic tickets and citations, including speeding, reckless driving and driving without a license. The records show Battiloro was going at least 70 mph in a 25 mph zone.
In a video streamed on Battiloro's YouTube channel one day after the incident, a young man claims he was bullied as he talks about the case.
"I've been bullied, ridiculed and stuff over false allegations, OK? Over this whole thing about things that have happened in the past. There's more to this story. It'll come out in the future," he says.
Heartbroken community coming to grips with fatal hit-and-run
Close friends, family and many strangers have been drawn together since the tragic crash Monday evening in Cranford.
Niotis and Salas were riding an e-bike when an SUV struck them on Burnside Avenue. The driver, according to police, ditched the vehicle around the corner and fled.
The suspect, a relative of the police chief in neighboring Westfield, allegedly left the car in front of neighbor Tim Borin's house.
"There was a lot all at once. I peeked my head out the window and I saw the car that had been abandoned right here next to my house, with the e-bike sort of lodged in the engine block," Borin said.
In her heartbreak, mother Foula Niotis found the strength to talk about her beloved daughter.
"She was my best friend. My sunshine," she said.
She described her daughter as a dreamer and full of life.
"Maria had a passion for all things beautiful – music, makeup, hair, fashion," Foula Niotis said. "It wasn't just about glam. It was about helping people see the beauty in themselves that maybe they had forgotten."
For both families, there's a hole that can never be filled.
"It's an emptiness in our home. In her room, in my arms," Foula Niotis said.
Maria Niotis' funeral will take place Friday morning at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Union. Visitation for Salas will be held Saturday before a funeral Monday.
Police chief related to suspect says teen should be judged in court
Westfield Police Chief Christopher Battiloro, who responded to the crash, said in a statement he watched Salas grow up and remembered her as "a beautiful, charismatic young lady."
Battiloro said the 17-year-old suspect, who has the same last name, is not his son or a member of his immediate family. He said the suspect should "face the consequences of his alleged actions in a court of law."
The community, meanwhile, is staying focused on the memories of the girls and their families.
"You never know how much time you have with somebody until it's just suddenly ripped away from you, and I feel like I'm really feeling that here," friend Tristan Ridall said.
"I just can't imagine what they're experiencing. But we're just here to show support. We're here because we know that it's not just this immediate period of grief, it's going to extend beyond this," Kim Kraemer, of Cranford, said.
"We're all in this together," Ridall said. "Instead of hate and anger, we should put [our efforts] into condolences and trying to build each other back up from this."
Hope is beginning to take shape as the memorial on Burnside Avenue grows by the minute.