Brooklyn chain-reaction crash leaves 14-year-old dead: 'He was my best friend'

BROOKLYN - A 14-year-old boy was struck and killed Saturday night after getting caught in between a vehicle crash in the Canarsie section of Brooklyn, the NYPD said.

Christian Antoine, the youngest of four, just celebrated his 14th birthday a month ago.

Christian Antoine, 14, died at a hospital, police said.

But on Sunday night, his family was struggling to try to make sense of the teen’s sudden and sobering absence, one that just doesn’t feel real for his mother.

"She don’t have no words, but we just here to encourage her, give her strength back," said Bidjy Jacintche, the victim's oldest brother. 

According to police, the teen was caught in between a crash just after 6:15 p.m. at the intersection of E. 81st St. and Glenwood Road.

In surveillance video obtained by FOX 5 NY, the driver of an SUV can be seen speeding down Glenwood Road, where he collided with a pickup truck easing out of 81st St., police said.

Surveillance video of the incident was obtained by FOX 5 NY.

Police said the SUV rotated clockwise into Antoine, who was attempting to cross the street on his way home – just a block from his front door.

The teen later died at a hospital. Police arrested and charged the driver of the SUV, 45-year old Rayan Salmon, with driving without a valid license.

"I would just say when you’re driving, be a little more careful. That’s all I’d say," the victim's oldest brother shared. 

A neighbor, Ms. Morrison, said she didn’t see the crash, but heard the impact of it ringing into her home. She knew once she heard it, it was serious. 

The crash happened at the intersection of E. 81st St. and Glenwood Road, the NYPD said.

Accidents are a recurring problem for her at the intersection, she says. Morrison is hoping her intersection gets what all the others already have, to put a dent in the damage she’s seen far too many times.

"Twenty-five years, we need a stop light because what happens is they don’t stop at the stop sign, they just race," Morrison said.

Meanwhile, the pots and pans on the stove in Christian’s family kitchen lie idle and void of his act of love, an act his family grew to cherish before it would become just a memory.

"He’d make me banana, and sometimes he'd put peanuts in it knowing I’m allergic to peanuts, and he’d try to make another one for me just to comfort me," said Eudana Gichar, the teen's sister. "He was my best friend."