Nutley, New Jersey hit and run victim with 'love for life' mourned at vigil
PATERSON, New Jersey (WABC) -- Natalie Perlaza did not just lose her little brother, her little brother was taken from her.
"He was just outgoing, and nothing's going to bring that back. Nothing's going to bring him back," she said.
His name is Wiston Perlaza, but his family knew him as 'Bebe.' He epitomized a love for life, but at 22, it is all gone. To say the sudden loss is crushing for everyone at the vigil is an understatement.
Authorities say Wiston was killed in a hit and run in Nutley, New Jersey this past Wednesday.
He was hit while walking with a date on Valentine's Day - she survived.
On Sunday, police arrested 42-year-old Dhkir Robinson in connection with the hit-and-run collision.
Wiston's mother can't muster up the words but has to imagine her son is now wearing a smile up in heaven, where she hopes the balloons from the vigil end up. Knowing he won't be coming back to his home in Paterson, his older brother is holding the weight of the world.
Wiston would have celebrated his 23rd birthday this Monday - and this is not the gathering his family or friends expected to have. With heavy hearts, they celebrated his life.
"It just feels weird without him. It just feels like I can still call him, but I can't anymore," said high school friend Anderson Lopez.
Best friends since high school, Lopez says Wiston, a mechanic, dreamed of owning his own shop - dreams that were infectious.
"Even if he didn't know you, he treated you as a friend. He'd always feel like home," Lopez adds.
This home - forever changed. The only solace the family says it now has is news of an arrest from police, though the Essex County Prosecutor's Office won't yet confirm that.
"It's a small victory, it's a small win - and I'm glad he's off the streets," said Wiston's older brother, Erick Ferrer.
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