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Horrific Crash Kills Tenafly Driver, 19, Injures Three Others

A 19-year-old Tenafly driver was killed and three passengers were injured -- one critically -- when a sedan slammed into a tree, authorities said.

Aftermath of crash on Knickerbocker Road at Columbus Drive in Tenafly.

Aftermath of crash on Knickerbocker Road at Columbus Drive in Tenafly.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Romero for DAILY VOICE
Knickerbocker Road at Columbus Drive, Tenafly

Knickerbocker Road at Columbus Drive, Tenafly

Photo Credit: Jordan Bittan for DAILY VOICE
Firefighters had to remove the roof.

Firefighters had to remove the roof.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Romero for DAILY VOICE

An injured passenger flagged down a police car following the 10 p.m. crash Saturday on Knickerbocker Road at the corner of Columbus Drive, Tenafly Police Chief Robert Chamberlain said

Firefighters cut the roof off to free a 32-year-old Bayonne woman sitting in the front seat.

She and the two back-seat passengers – a Cresskill woman and Bergenfield man, both 20 – were taken to Hackensack University Medical Center, the chief told Daily Voice.

The driver, Jesus Mejia-Aguilar of Tenafly, was pronounced dead at the scene, which is north of Riveredge Road and south of Hickory Avenue.

His identity was temporarily being withheld to ensure that full and proper notifications are made to his next of kin.

The others sustained injuries that ranged from serious to life-threatening, Chamberlain said.

Borough police, firefighters and the Tenafly Volunteer Ambulance Corps were among the responders, along with members of Dumont Fire Rescue.

Chamberlain thanked “all of the first responders from the borough and neighboring towns who responded and assisted with last night’s operation. A special thank you goes out the Tenafly and Dumont fire departments for the challenging extraction they were able to successfully perform.”

Tenafly police were investigating along with the Bergen County Prosecutor's Fatal Accident Investigations Unit, the Bergen County Medical Examiner’s Office and the Bergen County Sheriff's Bureau of Criminal Identification, which collected evidence.

Chamberlain asked that anyone with additional information about the crash, or the events leading up to it, contact Tenafly police: (201) 568-5100.

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