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New York boat operator charged as police search for missing best man New York boat operator charged as second body is pulled from Hudson
(about 3 hours later)
Authorities returned to the Hudson River on Sunday to search for the planned best man in a wedding who fell into the water after a speedboat carrying members of a bridal party crashed near the Tappan Zee Bridge. A second body was pulled from the Hudson River on Sunday near where a bride-to-be and her fiance's best man went missing after a nighttime boat crash near the Tappan Zee Bridge.
As many as dozen boats will help scour the water for 30-year-old Mark Lennon, who is presumed dead, said William Barbera, chief of the Rockland County sheriff's office. The body of a man believed to be 30-year-old Mark Lennon was discovered by someone on a recreational watercraft who then called 911, Rockland County Sheriff Louis Falco said. The body was found near Piermont about a mile downstream from where the body of a woman believed to be bride-to-be Lindsey Stewart was found Saturday.
Lennon and 30-year-old bride-to-be Lindsey Stewart were thrown into the river after their boat crashed into a construction barge Friday night. Four other people on the boat, including Stewart's fiance, were hurt. Falco said both families had been notified and were distraught. The bodies have since been taken to the medical examiner's office; neither person was wearing a life vest.
The body of a woman matching Stewart's description was pulled from the water Saturday. Authorities haven't yet released a positive identification. "I don't think you can put words to what we have to tell these families," he said.
The boat's operator, Jojo John, was charged Saturday with vehicular manslaughter and three counts of vehicular assault from a hospital bed, where he was recovering from his injuries in the crash, Barbera said. Stewart was set to be married August 10. Lennon was the best man.
/>Lennon and Stewart were thrown into the river Friday night after their speedboat crashed into a barge carrying materials for the construction of a replacement for the bridge. Four other friends, including Stewart's fiance, Brian Bond, and the boat operator, Jojo John, were hospitalized.
Authorities said they suspect the 35-year-old Nyack man, pictured, was intoxicated at the time of the crash, but they are still awaiting results of blood tests. Attempts to reach John's family weren't immediately successful and it wasn't clear if he had an attorney. John, 35, pictured, was charged Saturday with vehicular manslaughter and three counts of vehicular assault from a hospital bed, where he was recovering from his injuries in the crash, said William Barbera, chief of the Rockland County sheriff's office. Authorities say they suspect John was intoxicated at the time of the crash, but they are awaiting results of blood tests.
Barbera declined to identify the other two people aboard the boat and had no information on their condition. The two and Bond also remained hospitalized Saturday night. Attempts to reach John's family weren't immediately successful and it wasn't clear if he had an attorney.
The group had left the village of Piermont for a short trip aboard the 21-foot Stingray across the river to Tarrytown, about 30 miles north of New York City, authorities said. Authorities have declined to identify the other two boat passengers, saying they're considered witnesses to a crime. One of them has been released from the hospital.
The boat struck a barge carrying materials for the construction of a replacement for the Tappan Zee Bridge, authorities said. Barbera said the barge was equipped with lights, but it was still difficult to see on the water late at night. Authorities have said the barge was equipped with lights, but it was still difficult to see on the water late at night. Falco said Sunday that the lighting would be a part of the investigation.
Stewart, of Piermont, worked for an insurance company. She and Bond were to be married at the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Pearl River, with a reception at a vineyard in Hillburn, her stepfather Walter Kosik said.
/>The couple had known each other for years and used to go to church together, he said.		 "We will determine if those barges were lit properly and if it was a factor," he said.
Sheryl Palacio, a high school biology teacher from Valley Cottage, went to the pier Sunday with her two young sons and father and said she knows Bond, an art teacher, and John.
"I've known Brian my whole life," she said. "He's an outstanding teacher, a wonderful, kind, respectful man. Now his best friend is missing and his other best friend is charged with manslaughter."
Palacio said John worked as a banker at a local Chase branch and opened accounts for her two boys.
"I just want to make sure everyone knows he was a good man, happy and loving," she said. "He was always telling me about his nieces and nephews."
Palacio's father, Mitchell Turk, of Orangeburg, said he visited with Bond's mother, Jean, at her home in Pearl River on Sunday.
"It's sad and quiet there, long faces. They're trying to carry on, doing as well as can be expected," Turk said.
The group left the village of Piermont for a short trip aboard the 21-foot Stingray across the river to Tarrytown, about 30 miles north of New York City, authorities said.
Stewart, of Piermont, worked for an insurance company. She and Bond were to be married at the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Pearl River, with a reception at a vineyard in Hillburn, her stepfather, Walter Kosik, said.
The couple had known each other for years and used to go to church together, he said.
"They have been friends the whole time, and they fell in love about 3 1/2 years ago," Kosik said."They have been friends the whole time, and they fell in love about 3 1/2 years ago," Kosik said.
Stewart's former English teacher at Pearl River high school, who remained in contact with her through Facebook, called the accident "heartbreaking".
"She was one of my students and a bright, sweet girl loved by everyone," Doreen Arney said. "I knew that she was getting married, and to Brian. To happen to two such special kids – it just shouldn't happen."
The New York state thruway authority, which is overseeing the bridge project, said it was reviewing safety procedures. It said the lighting on the barges appeared to be functioning normally.The New York state thruway authority, which is overseeing the bridge project, said it was reviewing safety procedures. It said the lighting on the barges appeared to be functioning normally.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families during this difficult time," the authority said in a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families during this difficult time," it said in a statement.
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