NJ Teen Charged With Double Murder Of 2 High School Girls To Be Tried As Adult

CRANFORD, NJ — The teen charged in a crash that killed two Cranford High School students last year will be tried as an adult, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel and Cranford Police Chief Matthew Nazzaro said Friday.

Vincent Battiloro, now 18, has been waived to adult court and will face two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the case.

At the end of September last year, police were called to Burnside Avenue shortly after 5:30 p.m. after reports that two teenage girls riding an electric bicycle had been struck by a vehicle.

Both girls were Cranford High School students. They were taken to area hospitals after the crash, where they later died, according to officials.

The incident prompted a response in the community last fall, with schools offering counseling support and residents reacting as news of the crash spread through town.

Battiloro was later taken into custody following an investigation involving Cranford police and the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, authorities said.

Battiloro was 17 at the time of the crash.

Officials said the case will now proceed in Superior Court in Union County.

Maria Niotis and Isabella Salas were killed the hit-and-run crash on Sept. 29, 2025 while they were riding electronic bikes along Burnside Avenue.

Battiloro was identified as the suspect through court records along with reports he had been stalking at least one of the girls for months leading up to the crash. He is charged with two counts of murder and 15 other citations.

"It's been really hard. It's really bad," Isabella's parents, Mary and Edwin, told News 12 as they were joined by around a dozen other family members in February.

"When the attention goes toward the criminal case, I hate that," Mary added. "Yes, obviously, we want that dealt with, but no. It's about these girls.”

The parents of Vincent Battiloro called police at least four times about his behavior leading up to the crash, according to new information published by NJ Advance Media.

Maria's family attorney Brent Bramnick said that seeing the records of these phone calls reporting alarming behavior "with all of these other situations talking about violence...it's horrifying."

The family said they have "the same questions, and even more that have to be answered on why nothing was done. That is even more concerning."

According to NJ Advance Media, Battiloro's parents, Jeffrey and Judith, made their first of four phone calls in August of 2025 and repeatedly asked for assistance with their son’s escalating behavior.

Bramnick points to alarming language from Jeffrey Battiloro as cause for concern.

According to the report, the elder Battiloro, who is retired from the Chatham Police Department, told officers he wanted them to "just to sit down, talk" with their son and, he added, "so I have myself covered also."

It's still unclear what took place after the phone call, as Garwood Police have not released other documents related to the case due to Battiloro being a juvenile at the time of the crash.

"What are they trying to hide?" Bramnick said. "We have a lot of questions that the family deserves to have answered."

Battiloro is also connected to two swatting cases in September involving the family of one of the girls leading up to the crash. He has also been at the center of stalking allegations with his actions toward Maria.

"It was extremely difficult for our family to hear the 911 calls regarding the alleged homicide of our daughter," Niotis' mother Foulla told Patch in October 2025 after tapes of residents reporting the slaying were made public.

In the months following the attack, Foulla has also had death threats directed to her workplace, the family's lawyer, Brent Bramnick, said.

Through it all, the families are keeping their spirits high in honor of Maria and Isabella, and making sure that Cranford knows how much the neighborhood has meant to them during this tough time.

"We continue to grieve and greatly appreciate the ongoing support the community has shown for our family," Foulla added.

Along with a decorated gazebo downtown, a number of other tributes and memorials continue to be held in the girls' honor since their death in September.

At the end of 2025, the Cranford and greater Union County community came together to raise tens of thousands of dollars for the families through a music sale put on by a local DJ who partnered with a restaurant in the area.

READ MORE: $23K Raised For Families Of Girls Killed In Cranford

With reporting by Eddie Callahan