Victims of Rochester New Year’s Eve attack identified

Joshua Orr and Justina Hughes have been hailed as ‘heroes’ after their Uber blocked pedestrians from impact

The two victims killed in the horror New Year’s Eve attack in Rochester, New York, have now been identified.

Justina Hughes, 28, of Geneva and Joshua Orr, 29, of Webster, spent their last night seeing in 2024 together at a rock concert at the Kodak Center.

At around 12.52am on New Year’s Day, they had just left the event and were riding as passengers in an Uber leaving the venue.

But, as the Mitsubishi left the parking lot, a Ford SUV driven by 35-year-old suspect Michael Avery smashed into the vehicle, before ploughing through a crowd of pedestrians on a crosswalk.

Not even an hour into 2024, the two concertgoers had lost their lives.

Avery died hours later from his injuries. The Uber driver was also taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

At least nine pedestrians were also injured in the “intentional” crash, Rochester Police Chief David Smith said on Tuesday.

At least one victim has been left with “life-altering” injuries while all others should make a full recovery.

Hughes’ family confirmed her death in a statement to local outlet WHAM.

The family said that she and Orr were best friends and so they were “taking peace” from the fact that the pair had spent their last moments together “enjoying their passion and friendship”.

The best friends attended a Grateful Dead tribute concert together to ring in 2024 (Provided photo/WHAM)

The pair will “forever be heroes” as “many other lives were saved because they became, albeit unaware, a shield for others,” when the Ford SUV struck their car first before the crowd, the family said.

Orr’s family echoed this, saying in a statement to the outlet that he “is a hero and saved countless lives from being taken away from our community”.

His family are also taking comfort in the knowledge that he spent his final moments enjoying live music – something he loved most.

“On New Year’s Eve, Josh was doing his favourite thing in the world, attending a Grateful Dead tribute band when he was taken from us,” they said.

Orr’s partner Brit Abbott described him as the “kindest man” as she said she will “miss him for the rest of my life”.

Avery was named as the suspect in the “intentional” crash that killed the two victims on Tuesday.

Their car was struck by a speeding Ford, killing them both in the early hours of the morning (WHAM)

Investigators are still unsure as to what motivated him to drive at speed towards the crowd.

Police said in a press conference on Tuesday that there was no evidence of terrorism or any political or social motives.

The suspect’s family believed he had a “possible undiagnosed mental health issue,” police said.

The crash caused a huge blaze that took firefighters almost one hour to extinguish, Chief Smith said.

Michael Avery, 35, who drove the Ford with gas canisters inside died on Monday night (Rochester Police Department/X)

Once the fire was contained and put out, first responders at the scene found an unusual amount of gasoline canisters in and around the striking vehicle.

In total, police said there were at least half a dozen gasoline canisters found lying on the street and in the vehicle.

On Tuesday, Chief Smith confirmed that Avery had bought these gasoline products from various stores in the Ontario area on 30 December.

The Independent has contacted the Rochester Police Department for further information.