Joe.My.God. LGBT News
The New York Times reports:
The car that exploded this week at a border bridge in Niagara Falls, N.Y., was a 2022 Bentley Flying Spur, the authorities said on Friday, an ultraluxury model capable of reaching a speed of 60 miles per hour in four seconds. The police identified Kurt P. Villani as the driver and Monica Villani as the passenger. The married couple, who were both 53 and from Grand Island, were the owners of several businesses in western New York. They were headed to a concert in Toronto.
The base model Flying Spur in 2022 came powered by an eight-cylinder engine generating 542 horsepower and weighed 5,137 pounds, according to specifications from Edmunds, which provides data about automobiles for consumers. Speculation had percolated online about the car’s make and model since the crash just before noon on Wednesday, and investigators were exploring whether a mechanical problem had caused the car to accelerate out of control.
The Daily Mail reports:
Bentley recalled some car models in 2021 because accelerators were becoming stuck, creating huge safety fears, two years before a Niagara Falls couple died in a fiery crash in their vehicle. The car maker issued the recall in the summer of 2021 for Continental GT and Flying Spur models built between 2018 and 2021.
The recall notice cited a manufacturing flaw that caused accelerators to get stuck while engaged. A Bentley spokesperson said the recall did not apply to the Mr. Villani’s vehicle, since it was only relevant to right-hand cars issued in Europe and Australia.
By the time the fire had been extinguished, there was little left of the vehicle. It’s unknown whether the car had a black box that would have recorded the moments before the crash, or whether it survived.
Some have speculated that the victims’ family could file defamation suits over claims that the deceased couple were Islamic terrorists.
Update from local news on the driver of the car who Ted Cruz and other Republicans in Congress claimed was a terrorist and blamed Biden for it. Police Chief: “It doesn’t help anybody, especially the family, when all these rumors are being posted.” pic.twitter.com/zkhHIX80yO
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) November 25, 2023