'Life was taken away so quickly': Arrest made in Cumberland County deputy's traffic death

Editor's note: This is an updated version of the original story. The State Highway Patrol clarified Friday afternoon that, despite the information in the charging document, a law enforcement K9 was not injured.

A Linden man is charged with impaired driving and felony death by vehicle in the hit-and-run death of a Cumberland County deputy early Friday.

Deputy Oscar Yovani Bolanos-Anavisca Jr., 23, was killed in the 2:46 a.m. accident on Gillespie Street, according to the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office.

Nicholas Terlizzi, 24, of Coronation Drive, is charged with felony death by vehicle and hit-and-run resulting in death; and misdemeanor driving while impaired, reckless driving to endanger, driving on a restricted license, driving without insurance and driving without registration, according to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol charging document. He was also cited with a red light infraction.

Terlizzi is being held in the Cumberland County jail without bail, Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West said.

The charging document stated both Bolanos-Anavisca Jr. and a law enforcement K9 were killed, but the SHP clarified Friday afternoon that the dog was not injured. Terlizzi's occupation on the document is listed as a tow-truck driver.

What happened?

The Sheriff's Office said that deputies were investigating a robbery at Circle K at 2990 Gillespie St. when Bolanos-Anavisca Jr. was struck as he walked back to his patrol vehicle after a tracking K9 chased the scent of the robber.

The driver left the scene, but was located a short distance away, officials said. Terlizzi's vehicle, identified by Sheriff Ennis Wright as a BMW, was displaying a revoked license plate, the charging document states.

Bolanos-Anavisca Jr. was taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center, where he died of his injuries, the Sheriff's Office said.

Hours after the wreck, nearly a dozen emergency vehicles still surrounded the scene as members of the North Carolina State Highway Patrol examined the debris-littered roadway. A dark baseball cap could be seen lying among more than a dozen orange evidence cones in the Gillespie Street intersection.

The Sheriff's Office said Bolanos-Anavisca Jr. was a "dedicated, selfless member of the Sheriff’s Office who lost his life protecting the citizens of Cumberland County."

He began his career in the Sheriff's Office in November 2020 and previously served as a school resource officer at Hope Mills Middle School, the release said.

Cumberland County Schools issued a statement Friday afternoon, noting Bolanos-Anavisca Jr.'s work at the school and that he was a 2018 graduate of South View High School in Hope Mills and a "great example of a successful student."

"During his brief tenure (as an SRO) at Hope Mills Middle, he made an indelible mark on the lives of the students, staff and families he served. Most recently, he was a volunteer assistant football coach at Hope Mills Middle," the statement said. "We will never forget his incredible service to our school system. Our thoughts and prayers are with Deputy Oscar Yovani Bolanos-Anavisca’s family, friends and everyone who knew him."

Hay Street United Methodist Church sent out a notice just before noon asking for prayers for the deputy's fiancee, Elena Schmidt, as law enforcement agencies across the state and others posted condolences to social media.

"To Sheriff Wright, fellow Deputies, and to the family of the fallen Deputy, our deepest condolences and heartfelt prayers are with you during this difficult time," reads a message on the Fayetteville Police Department's Facebook page.

The Spring Lake Police Department posted: "Terrible news this morning. We are keeping everyone at the ... Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office in our hearts."

In Hope Mills, where Bolanos-Anavisca, Jr. grew up, the Police Department posted on its Facebook page, "Our thoughts and prayers are with Sheriff Wright, Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office Deputies, and with the family of the deputy killed in the line of duty."

The Raleigh Police Department also offered condolences on Facebook.

"Our hearts are heavy. Cumberland County Sheriff's Department Deputy Oscar Yovani Bolanos-Anavisca, Jr. was tragically lost in the line of duty last night. The Raleigh Police Department mourns and grieves with the family of our brother-in-blue. Rest easy Deputy Bolanos-Anavisca, Jr., we have the watch from here," the post read.

Gov. Roy Cooper addressed the tragedy, noting he'd been in contact with Sheriff Ennis Wright.

"We mourn Cumberland County Deputy Oscar Yovani Bolanos-Anavisca Jr. who was killed in the line of duty," Cooper said in a statement on Twitter. "I spoke with Sheriff Wright offering condolences, support and appreciation for the men and women who keep our communities safe."

The governor ordered all U.S. and North Carolina flags at state facilities to be set at half-staff through sunset Saturday.

Family, community reeling

More than 20 members of the young deputy's family silently filed into the Sheriff's Office conference room on Friday afternoon for a news conference. An older grief-stricken member was comforted by those around him as Sheriff Ennis Wright took to the podium.

"I'm standing here with a heavy heart," Wright said, the weight of the loss apparent on his face. "I just lost a good deputy. A mother lost her son, sisters and brothers lost a brother."

Wright was joined by members of the SHP, the SBI and District Attorney West.

The sheriff said Bolanos-Anavisca Jr. stood out to him because he was so passionate about serving as a deputy.

"We had a young officer out here doing his job, what he loved to do, what he wanted to do, and his life was taken away so quickly behind a senseless act of someone getting behind the wheel after they been drinking," Wright said.

The loss hit especially hard, the sheriff noted, because deputies renewed their oaths this week.

"It weighs on me," Wright said. "I take the responsibility for every deputy that's in this Sheriff's Office. I take responsibility for that, and this young man gave his life to this county for something that he wanted to do."

Lt. Scott Smith with the SHP said evidence is being processed by the SBI and the investigation remained underway.

Some family members seated in the first two rows of the audience quietly wept into tissues as officials spoke. Mitch Deaver with the SBI's Southeastern District Office in Fayetteville addressed the family directly.

"We offer you our deepest condolences. We offer that to you as well as Sheriff Wright and the men and women of the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office," Deaver said. "I can assure you that you are a part of their family and that they will be here for you and we will be here for you, not only today but in the days to come, and we will hold each of you up in our thoughts and prayers."

West, whose office is prosecuting the case against Terlizzi, shared his condolences and emphasized the unnecessary nature of the crash.

"We did not have to be here this afternoon," he said. "The one promise I can make to this family and to this community is we will get justice in this case for what was done today because we lost an officer that was serving and protecting us, that was willing to give his life to serve and protect us."

Wright closed the gathering by reassuring Bolanos-Anavisca Jr.'s family that they would not be alone.

"As I said earlier at the hospital, we're here for you," he said. "I preach family because we are family. We take care of each other. That's what we do."

Bolanos-Anavisca Jr. was a special person, Wright said, and his sacrifice would not be forgotten.

"It's a calling to give your life for someone else. It takes special people to do that, and that's what this young man did," he said. "He's up there with the good Lord. He's looking down on us. That's what he's doing. We're going to get through this. We're going to get through this together."

According to the Officer Down Memorial Page website, Bolanos-Anavisca Jr.'s death is the 13th line-of-duty death for the Sheriff's Office since 1916. The last Cumberland County deputy killed while on duty was Christopher Brian Matthews, 26, who died in an automobile crash on River Road on Sept. 30, 2005.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Cumberland County deputy killed after hit by vehicle early Friday