Girl Killed in Hit-and-Run at Portugal Day Festival in Newark

NEWARK, N.J. – Police were trying to find the driver of a van that struck and killed a 12-year-old near the city's annual Portugal Day festival.

Police say Kaitlyn Velez was hit after she ducked under a barricade and stepped between two parked vehicles to buy ice cream on Sunday.

The van fled the scene.

Velez was pronounced dead at University Hospital.

Velez was from Pennsylvania and had been spending time with an uncle and aunt. Her hometown was unavailable.

The festival, in the city's Ironbound section, is New Jersey's largest ethnic celebration.