Funeral Held For College Student Shot To Death In West Orange

WEST ORANGE, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- A funeral was held Tuesday for a college student who was found shot to death in a vehicle in West Orange last week.

Brokenhearted friends and relatives of 19-year-old Brendan Tevlin filed into St. Philomena Church in Livingston, some too emotional to speak but others anxious to tell the world about the young man they knew and loved.

"Brendan Tevlin was an extraordinary kid from an extraordinary family and the rest of us are lucky to have known him," friend Catherine McLoane told CBS 2's Kathryn Brown.

"I always remember he always used to come on the beach with his straw hat and Tommy Bahama chair and he'd just sit down and he'd laugh and joke around with everyone," said friend Brooke Harrington. "He was just a great person."

"Everybody looked up to this great kid," said Father Brian Needles.

The college student was shot and killed last Wednesday. His body was found in the family Jeep at an apartment complex. As CBS 2's Emily Smith reported, the teen was remembered as a straight-A student and a Seton Hall Prep graduate.

The teen reportedly was visiting a friend and had just texted his mom to say he was headed home. Investigators say he was targeted, but haven't said why.

Prosecutors released pictures of two young men seen on surveillance video running in the area of the shooting, which happened at Walker Road and Northfield Avenue.

Authorities are trying to find out who they are and what they may have seen.

Tevlin had just completed his freshman year at the University of Richmond in Virginia and was home from college for the summer.

Following the funeral Tevlin's body was brought to a cemetery in East Hanover.

An anonymous donation has increased the reward to $25,000 for information leading to an arrest. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Essex County Prosecutor's Office tip line at (877) 847-7432.

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