Police have identified the victim of yesterday's murder suicide in the parking lot of the Wayne Junction train station.VanessaWatson, 26, of the 3700 block of North 18th Street in Tioga, was anaspiring model who went by the stage name Vanessa Banks. She walked therunway at New York's Fall Fashion Week for designer Hally McGehean inSeptember, recently participated in BET's Rip the Runway and appeared innumerous photo shoots and music videos."I just remember herbeing real vibrant, real hungry as far as wanting to break into thescene and I really admired that because she was a go-getter," saidfriend and designer Simon Carr of Punchline Clothing. "She really wantedto make an impact and she did." He said that her drive prompted her todo anything to make it to a job, whether it meant traveling out of townon the spur of the moment or bringing her young daughter to rehearsals.Policesaid Watson was shot and killed by Luis McCrea, who then turned the gunon himself. McCrea was a possessive lover, according to friends, andWatson's ambitions threatened him. "She knew a lot of people in theindustry and she was really getting out there. I think that was ahindrance," Carr said, recalling an event at which Watson was unable totalk with him because McCrea was jealously watching her from across theroom. "It was just really detrimental."Friends are currently planning a benefit fundraiser for Watson's three surviving children.Several fan and memorial pages and numerous photo tributes to Watson were already set up on Facebook this morning, with scores of friends, family and fans commenting about the woman's beauty, both inside and out.
