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New York Post
Teen accused of killing groom in NYC hit-and-run hours before wedding nabbed attempting to flee country
By Dean Balsamini,
2 days ago
The wrong-way teen driver accused of killing a groom in a Harlem hit-and-run hours before his wedding was nabbed at the Canadian border just a day after the horrific incident, according to a criminal complaint.
Jimmy Connors, 17, of Long Island, is now cooling his heels at a juvenile detention center after being ordered held without bail at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court Friday, authorities said.
Connors was detained when he tried to cross at the Canadian border without identification and full of suspicious injuries.
Jimmy Connors, 17, of Long Island, is now cooling his heels at a juvenile detention center after being ordered held without bail at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court Friday, authorities said. G.N.Miller/NY Post
Canadian authorities saw he “had cuts and bruises on his face, a large bruise on the left side of his stomach, blood on his shirt, and he was walking with a limp,” an NYPD officer wrote in the criminal complaint against Connors.
The Canadian official was able to ID Connors in photos of the teen leaving the scene of the deadly Aug. 24 crash in a Chevy Silverado pick-up truck with Ontario license plates, according to the complaint.
He was officially arrested in New York City on Friday. Cops were not immediately able to say when he was extradited to The Big Apple.
Connors’ attorney, Jonathan Perez, said he pleaded “not guilty.”
A detention hearing is slated for Monday.
Kirk Walker, 38, of Manhattan was killed by a wrong-way driver the day before he was set to marry Shauntea Weaver. Obtained by the NY Post
He told The Post on Saturday that “the DA just has circumstantial evidence at this point” and time will show “he wasn’t involved or the culprit. I do believe there were others. … It’s a very weak case.”
Perez would not get into specifics but said Connors is “sick, autistic, has epilepsy” and “he needs medication.”
“He’s a 17-year-old child … there were other people in the car. I believe he’s being taken advantage of by the culprit because he is autistic and has epilepsy. Just because he was seen at some point in that vehicle, doesn’t mean he was the main culprit,” Perez said.
Walker was set to tie the knot in a ceremony in New Jersey. Obtained by the NY Post
Connors was allegedly barreling down the wrong side of the Henry Hudson Parkway in Upper Manhattan around 2:20 a.m. when he crashed his white pick-up into a car carrying Kirk Walker and his cousin, Rob McLaurin, killing both men.
Walker, a 38-year-old dad of three from Manhattan, was poised to marry fiancée Shauntea Weaver, 40, in a lavish ceremony in New Jersey.
“I’m supposed to be in my wedding dress right now — not in mourning,” Weaver told The Post in a heartbreaking exclusive interview on what was supposed to be her wedding day.
A New York Yankees baseball hat is left among the wreckage of the deadly Henry Hudson Parkway crash. G.N.Miller/NY Post
“I feel like this is a TV show and I’m going to wake up any minute and go back to my real life.’’
Weaver said the accused killer must be held accountable.
“This man frivolously took his life, recklessly took his life and completely ruined my life because that was my husband and I was supposed to start a life with him.”
“I just want justice to be served to the fullest extent,” the grieving fiancée added.
“I just need some type of relief and I need to know that this person is going to pay for the lives he’s taken.”
Connors was caught when he tried to cross at the Canadian border without identification and with suspicious injuries. G.N.Miller/NY Post
She also said it’s the first step in “getting justice for Kirk and Robert.”
“While the detainment of the man who recklessly stole the lives of two of our beloved is something we take peace in knowing, understand that this is only the first step on a long road to justice,” she added.
The DA “intends to charge” Connors as an adult, Perez said, but the attorney will be “fighting” it.
The attorney also charged that the police interviewed a “17-year-old kid” without representation, parent or guardian and “that kind of crossed the boundaries.”
Perez would not provide much background on his client except to say that his “family has come from overseas to support him immediately.”
He also noted that Connors “was Catholic” and “regardless, he and I express extreme sorrow” over the deaths.
For the latest metro stories, top headlines, breaking news and more, visit nypost.com/metro/
For a sick, autistic, has epilepsy” and “he needs medication kid, he sure knew what trying to escape-&-dodge-the-authorities meant. Glad they snatched him.
Seatheblu
53m ago
17 and doing everything any selfish adult would, but now he is just a child?! gthoh This country is messed up, but it can't be that far gone yet that this is a poor baby got caught up kinda thing.
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