The families of two teen girls who were fatally mowed down while biking through their New Jersey neighborhood say the teen boy charged in their murders had been “plotting this attack” for months.
Vincent Battiloro is accused of intentionally ramming a black 2021 Jeep Compass into two best friends, Isabella Salas and Maria Niotis, as they rode on e-bikes before allegedly abandoning the car and fleeing the scene, CBS News reported.
Battiloro, 17, was allegedly driving at least 70 miles per hour in a 25 mph zone when he fatally crashed into the girls, both 17, on Monday night in Cranford, about 10 miles southwest of Newark.
He was detained for questioning Monday night and released, but was then arrested the following morning, police said. On Wednesday, he was charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
The heartbroken families of Salas and Niotis say Battiloro had been stalking Niotis for months before the fatal attack, NBC New York reported.
In a joint statement, the girls’ families said Battiloro was a “coward of a man, who had been plotting this attack against Maria for months [and] carried out this horrific act.”
Sources told NBC the three teens knew each other – and that the attack may have stemmed from a breakup. Relatives and friends of the girls told CBS that a restraining order had been filed against Battiloro before the crash.
One day after their deaths, Battiloro referred to the crash in a 20-minute YouTube livestream before his arrest. During the stream, he claimed that there had been misinformation that he was being bullied.
"I need to explain some things that happened over the past few days...There’s been a lot of misinformation going on over the internet but I will say this: I wish my sincerest condolences to those two girls lost in that tragic accident," he said in the video.
"It is an absolute unfortunate situation and there's more to the story that you’re not getting. But when the time comes, I will explain it in greater detail.”
He later said in the livestream: "I’m a nice kid, I’m 17 years old with a good family by my side and these allegations that have been ruining everything it’s a shame.”
Battiloro is allegedly currently in custody, although prosecutors have not specified where or when he is expected to appear in court. In addition to the two first-degree murder charges, police issued Battiloro at least 15 tickets and citations related to the crash for speeding, reckless driving and driving without a license.
Neighbors who saw the aftermath of the crash said they were disgusted.
"Horrible. Horrible. Nothing in the world is more horrible than what I saw yesterday," said Barbara Bryson. "It’s just devastating. It’s devastating for the community, everybody’s affected by this."
"Hearing that someone was hit by a car, it was absolutely devastating. But then as the whole story unwinded, it was so sickening. Like how could you leave?” Cranford local Amanda Poda questioned.
An uncle of Salas called their deaths horrific.
“Seventeen years old, great girl,” the uncle told NBC in Spanish. “She was riding her bike with her best friend. They were riding along and then this guy comes and kills them.”
The wake for Salas was held Saturday, while Niotis’s funeral was Friday. A GoFundMe set up by a colleague of one of the girl’s parents had raised over $161,000 for both of their families as of Sunday.
An investigation is ongoing. The Union County Prosecutor’s Office said they were looking for witnesses or anyone with video footage of the SUV involved.
