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George Kantakis of North Haledon was killed after the 2002 Ford Taurus came speeding around a curve on Route 208 north, hurtled off the highway and hit the tree near the Fair Lawn Road exit just before 2 a.m., Molinelli said.
Driver Lukasz Skibicki, 22, who was injured and remains hospitalized at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson with a fractured skull, was arrested.
More serious charges were brought after Kantakis was pronounced dead at 2:40 a.m. via telemetry by Dr. Sapria of the Valley Hospital in Ridgewood as emergency workers tried to remove him from the vehicle.
Bail for Skibicki, who also is charged with reckless driving, has been set at $150,000.
Skibicki is a Hasbrouck Heights High School graduate who worked on the school Pilot’s Log newspaper.
Route 208 was shut down at Plaza Road while members of Molinelli’s Fatal Accident Unit investigated and then as the vehicle was removed. It finally opened around 9 a.m.
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