Cause of crash that killed NY couple at Niagara Falls border crossing nonetheless a thriller 8 months later | EUROtoday

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A police investigation into the crash and explosion that killed two folks in a high-powered luxurious automotive at a Niagara Falls border crossing final yr has concluded with the crash’s trigger nonetheless a thriller, authorities mentioned.

The probe into the Nov. 22, 2023, crash that killed Kurt and Monica Villani, each 53, “is taken into account closed at this level, however might be reopened if any new proof involves gentle,” Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino advised The Buffalo News this week.

Restaino mentioned investigators had been hampered by the truth that the automotive’s occasion information recorder, or black field, was destroyed within the crash.

The Villanis, who had been from the western New York group of Grand Island, had been in a 2022 Bentley Flying Spur that crashed and exploded on the Rainbow Bridge connecting the cities of Niagara Falls, New York, and Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.

Security digicam video confirmed the Bentley race via an intersection, hit a low median and vault excessive into the air simply east of the bridge’s essential automobile checkpoint. The automotive flew for yards (meters) and crashed right into a line of checkpoint cubicles outdoors the digicam’s view.

The violent crash on the U.S.-Canada border aroused fears of terrorism, however the FBI’s Buffalo workplace mentioned its investigation discovered no indicators of a terror assault and turned the case over to native police.

The Niagara Falls police investigated the crash with out discovering any solutions to questions resembling whether or not a mechanical failure or driver error was in charge, the newspaper reported.

Calls to the Niagara Falls police positioned by The Associated Press weren’t returned, and a employees member in Restaino’s workplace mentioned the mayor was not obtainable to talk on Wednesday.

Restaino advised the Buffalo News that nobody might ever know what brought about the crash until insurers uncover it.

Betsy Ertel, a spokesperson for the Cincinnati Insurance Companies, which insured the Bentley, declined to debate particulars of any declare “out of respect for the privacy of our policyholders.”

Erin Bronner, a Bentley Motors spokesperson, advised the Buffalo News final February that Bentley Motors was conducting its personal investigation into the deadly crash.

Bronner declined to debate any particulars of the case on Wednesday.

Police mentioned the Villanis had been killed immediately within the crash and pronounced lifeless on the scene. The Edmunds.com web site describes the 2022 Flying Spur as a high-powered luxurious automotive that may go from 0 to 60 miles (96 kilometers) per hour in 4 seconds. When new, the automobile bought for $204,500 to $309,000, relying on which choices had been bought, the web site mentioned.