Devastating Tragedy
New Details Emerge on Horrific NJ Crash - Driver Charged with Killing 4 Yeshiva Students
A 41-year-old Colorado resident has been charged with the deaths of yeshiva students in a horrific traffic accident earlier this week in New Jersey. Early investigation details indicate he collided with the vehicle carrying the students, unclear whether due to alcohol, drugs, or speeding. Seconds later, a truck also struck the vehicle. None of the passengers survived.
Christopher Neff, 41, from Colorado, was charged this week in connection with the deadly crash in which four young yeshiva students were killed in New Jersey. If convicted, he could face decades in prison, according to Yeshiva World News.
The accident occurred during the night between Saturday and Sunday, local time, around 12:40 a.m. The Colorado driver collided head-on with the black car carrying four yeshiva students. Moments later, a truck also struck the vehicle.
All passengers in the car were killed in the tragic accident: 19-year-old Yaakov Kilberg, who was driving; 18-year-old Aharon Natan Lebovitz; 18-year-old Shlomo Aba Cohen, all from Lakewood. The fourth victim was 18-year-old Chaim Simcha Grossman from New York.
The accused driver was airlifted to a hospital in serious condition and is still receiving medical treatment. Police investigators have not specified whether the accident was caused by drugs, alcohol, or excessive speed.
Investigation circumstances are ongoing. According to some reports, the driver was heavily intoxicated at the time of the crash, and his blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit.
Following the accident on Turnpike Road in New Jersey, near the Delaware Memorial Bridge connecting New Jersey and Delaware, the road was closed for several hours. Emergency services evacuated the students while preserving their dignity.
This is not the first accident in the area involving yeshiva students recently. Last month, a horrific car accident occurred in Lakewood, killing three yeshiva students and critically injuring a fourth.
That accident occurred on a Friday when five students were traveling in a vehicle. The driver lost control, and two students were pronounced dead at the scene. Later, a third student succumbed to injuries.
Initial investigations indicated the students were following the rules, but the driver swerved to avoid a deer on the road, causing him to lose control. The car veered off the road and hit a tree. Passersby called emergency services, but responders were forced to pronounce two of the students dead at the scene.