The brother of one of the men killed in a deadly crash early Saturday morning said the car had been racing. Watch video
NEW BRUNSWICK - The two men killed early Monday when their car veered off Route 18 and plunged into the Raritan River had been racing with another vehicle before the driver lost control, according to the brother of one of the men killed.
Christopher Lantigua said he was riding in the car with his brother Kelvin Lantigua and the driver, Robert J. Veras-Toribio just before the fatal plunge. He got out of the car when the trio stopped at his New Brunswick residence and his girlfriend talked him into getting a bite to eat.
"They were racing," Christopher Lantigua said Tuesday. "Supposedly Robert lost control of the car. They were going pretty fast."
Lantigua rushed to the scene after he received a call from his friend.
His older brother, Kelvin Lantigua, 21, of New Brunswick, and the driver of the car, Veras-Toribio, 22, of North Brunswick, were pronounced dead at the scene.
According to police, the two men had been driving a 2009 Honda Accord on Route 18 north around 1:40 a.m. when it went through a wooded area near the exit to Route 27 and landed in the river.
Christopher Lantigua, 19, said he was informed by friends that his older brother and Veras-Toribio had been racing another car. The two men were friends with those in the other car, he said.
"That same night, I was with him. We were handing out in front of my house," Christopher Lantigua said. "We were talking to my friend, Robert, (and) he was talking about racing. I didn't think about the worst stuff that could happen. He used to do stuff like that with his old car. But I left him."
Lantigua didn't know it was the last time he would see his older brother alive.
"It was my girlfriend's birthday, and as soon as it hit (midnight), I texted her to see if she wanted to go eat," Lantigua said. "And then I left the car."
"I can't believe it now. I could have been gone as well," he said. "If it weren't for my girlfriend I probably would be dead," he said.
Lantigua said he and his family were expecting to speak to police at some point on Tuesday to learn more about what happened during the crash.
Before police arrived at the scene, he said his friend -- who he believes received a call from one of the other cars racing -- rushed to the scene and jumped in the water to try and rescue to them.
"He wasn't able to pull them out," Lantigua said. "He probably couldn't find him."
Lantigua said his brother was a photographer and that he liked to draw and paint. Kelvin Lantigua photographed and recorded weddings and his brother would help him edit the videos, Lantigua said.
"Emotionally, right now, I'm numb," he said. "I'm so blank, I am not even crying. I can't -- I don't even know what to do. My mother keeps crying."
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.