A memorial has been set up on Briggs Road where Koa Quintanilla died on Aug.12. (Staff photo)
Friends and family continued to gather Friday night at the site on Briggs Road where 15-year-old Koa Quintanilla died in a traffic collision on Aug. 12.
At about 8:19 p.m. that night, Koa was riding his e-motorcycle southbound on Briggs Road just before Garbani Road when he was struck by a vehicle in a hit-and-run collision. Police are looking for the suspect vehicle, which was described as a white SUV or minivan with front end damage.
A group of about 30 people – mostly teenagers who knew Koa – gathered at the site, where a cross, photos and flowers were placed.
“He was amazing,” said Koa’s aunt, Olivia Marruffo. “He was the light in every room. He had so many friends and touched so many lives in his own way.”
Marruffo said her nephew was careful to obey traffic rules and usually wore protective gear, although for some reason he was not wearing a helmet this time.
“He wore a backpack that was heavy leather,” she said. “He always wore his helmet — but he didn’t have it on this time. I heard maybe he left it at a friend’s house or something. Most of the time he would take main roads, but for some reason, this time he took this road.”
That stretch of Briggs Road is in a rural area that sometimes receives heavy traffic from motorists heading to and from a new housing development further east on Scott Road on the way to Liberty High School, where Koa was a sophomore football player.
“He was at our house,” said Jerry Alvarez, Koa’s grandfather. “I said, ‘Where you going? I love you.’ He said, ‘I love you too, grandpa. I’m going home now. See you later.’ ”
When Koa didn’t return home, family members began looking for him and calling around. They were informed of his death by police sometime later.
