ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – We’re learning more today about the 7-year-old boy killed in that hit and run outside of the River of Lights. Pronoy Bhattacharya was a second-grader who is being remembered as smart and kind.

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Tina Patel, the Director of Montessori ONE Academy, where Pronoy used to attend school, says he was a creative and empathetic child. “Every time you saw him there was a smile on his face. I’m very angry with this loss. It did not need to happen and we’ve lost a brilliant beautiful boy,” said Patel.

Patel says his younger brother still goes to the school. Patel says the Montessori ONE community is very close-knit and has never experienced a loss of this magnitude before. “We’ve worked hard the last two years to keep children safe from COVID and nobody would have thought that this is what we needed to keep them safe from as well,” Patel said.

People in Albuquerque say they’ve seen more deadly or serious crashes lately. One biker said seeing memorials on the side of the road has become commonplace. A local off-roading group says they’re devastated to hear of the crash.

Right now, they are fundraising with a goal of $20,000 to help support the Bhattacharya family. “We’ve decided to bring the off-road community together to raise some funds, hopefully, provide some little amount of relief to the family, not that we could replace the loss of him,” said Frank Keane, the owner of RZR-Ville.

The group will also be holding a benefit ride this Sunday and 100% of the proceeds will go to the family. Pronoy recently started the second grade at Georgia O’Keeffe Elementary. Albuquerque Public Schools has made counselors available to staff, students, and families at the school. Pronoy’s mother is a doctor at Presbyterian Hospital and his father’s social media lists him as an engineer for Pitney Bowes.