Police: SUV that hit, killed Bensalem student a 'hot mess'

BENSALEM, Pa. (WPVI) -- Police in Bensalem, Pa are working to build a criminal case against the 18-year-old driver who struck and killed a 16-year-girl as she was getting on her school bus Wednesday morning.

Minete Zeka, a sophomore at Bensalem High School, died after the crash on Bensalem Boulevard at Bridgewater Road.

No charges have been filed so far against the Bucks County Technical High School student, but police are finding numerous problems with the SUV that hit her.

One police official described the vehicle as a "hot mess."

Sources say the defroster doesn't work and the windshield may have been iced over at the time.

Action News has learned the vehicle may not have been legally registered.

Police say the driver either didn't see or ignored the flashing lights and extended stop sign arm on the stopped school bus.

Investigators will be giving the SUV a thorough mechanical inspection.

Investigators have also confiscated the driver's cell phone to determine if it had been in use at the time of the accident.

Superintendent David Baugh says district officials will be meeting with police Thursday to review safety issues at the bus stop.

Bensalem Police ask that anyone who may have witnessed the accident to contact them at 215-633-3719.

On Wednesday night, friends and family gathered to remember Zeka at the spot where she was killed. It started with a handful of friends lighting candles and it turned into dozens holding a vigil.

"She was a great person and she will be missed by a lot of people," friend Meme Alessandroni said.

"I want everyone to remember she was a free spirit and that she was her own person," friend Danielle Medio said. As it turns out, Zeka may have saved Medio from a similar fate last year at the same intersection.

"When I was here and almost got hit, I didn't see that the car didn't stop and I walked out and she literally pulled me back by my jacket and said 'wait, don't go,'" Medio said.

"The car whizzed by," Medio continued, "and I wish I was there to help her this time when she was there to help me, and I wasn't."

Some neighbors say that while Zeka's death is tragic, it's not surprising because of how dangerous this intersection can be.

"Cars come down this street here and the light is green and they're trying to speed down here and they're getting up to 50 mph easy trying to make that green light," said Clifford Thompson.