New Jersey

Search for Other Driver After Girl Dies When Car She Was in Crashes Off I-295

Madelynn Rizzo of Union, New Jersey, died when the Ford Focus she was riding in crashed off I-295 in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, Sunday night after colliding with another vehicle

What to Know

  • Police are searching for a driver involved in a Sunday crash along Interstate 295 in Mount Laurel that sent a sedan into the woods.
  • Nine-year-old Madelynn Rizzo of Union, New Jersey, died in the wreck.
  • Traffic on Interstate 295 backed up for hours as police investigated the deadly crash.

New Jersey State Police are searching for a driver involved in a nasty crash along busy Interstate 295 in South Jersey that left a 9-year-old girl in another car dead.

Madelynn Rizzo of Union, New Jersey, died after the Ford Focus she was strapped into the backseat of careened into the woods and struck several trees near milepost 38 in Mount Laurel, Burlington County, police said.

Madelynn's father, Marcelo Rizzo, 37, was driving the vehicle at the time of the crash, according to investigators. He suffered head trauma while Madelynn’s 8-year-old sister suffered serious injuries, police said.

Marcelo Rizzo was driving erratically prior to striking the other vehicle in the northbound center lane on the busy Sunday Thanksgiving travel day around 6 p.m., officials said.

The second vehicle that collided with the Focus likely has rear passenger side damage, police said. The driver didn't remain on the scene. Investigators were working to figure out what type of vehicle it is.

Anyone with information on the other vehicle is asked to call 609-298-1171.

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