In a quiet Nutley, New Jersey home on Hillside Avenue, a grim discovery was made on Thursday, January 15, 2015. Inside, authorities found the bodies of 37-year-old Christina Prestianni and her live-in boyfriend, 38-year-old Christopher Minichini. Both had sustained fatal gunshot wounds in what investigators believe was a murder-suicide. A preliminary investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office indicated that Minichini, a seven-year veteran of the New Jersey State Corrections, shot Prestianni before turning the gun on himself.
Friends and family were left reeling from the sudden and violent loss of a woman described as smart, funny, charismatic, and energetic. Prestianni was a native of Bloomfield and a graduate of Jersey City University. Her love for animals was not just a passion but also her profession, as she was the owner of Pupcake Dog Grooming and Bakery in West Caldwell.
Those who knew her said she was a wonderful person whose smile and sweetness would not be forgotten.
The investigation into the deaths was ongoing pending autopsy results. The couple lived together but did not have any children together. In the wake of the tragedy, friends and Prestianni's ex-husband set up a GoFundMe page to help with her funeral expenses. The community mourned the loss of a vibrant woman whose life was cut short in an act of domestic violence.
