Alexia Couyutas Duarte,Jared Groff Obituary, Death; – Swarthmore College is grieving the loss of several alumni who tragically perished in a private plane crash over the weekend.
All six individuals aboard a small aircraft, a twin-engine turboprop Mitsubishi MU-2B, lost their lives when it crashed near Copake, New York, around 12:15 p.m. on Saturday, close to the Massachusetts border, as reported by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The plane was en route to Columbia County Airport in Hudson, New York, carrying a close-knit family of medical professionals and accomplished student-athletes who were traveling to the Catskills for a birthday celebration and the Passover holiday.
Swarthmore has identified the victims as Alexia Couyutas Duarte, Jared Groff, and Jared’s parents, Michael Groff and Joy Saini. Additionally, his sister, Karenna Groff, and her boyfriend, James Santoro, also lost their lives in the incident. “With deep sorrow, we are reaching out to inform you that our community has lost several members of its extended family this past weekend,” stated Swarthmore College on its website.
According to officials, Michael Groff, Jared Groff, and Alexia Duarte were all graduates of the institution. Michael Groff, a neurosurgeon and the executive medical director of neuroscience at Rochester Regional Health, earned his degree from Swarthmore in 1988. His wife, Dr. Joy Saini, specialized in urogynecology.
Jared Groff graduated from Swarthmore in 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts in economics and political science. He was a dedicated member of the men’s basketball team for four years, contributing to teams that won a Centennial Conference championship and reached the NCAA Division III National Championship game for the first time in the program’s history. Recently, he worked as a paralegal at DW Partners in New York and intended to pursue law school this fall.
Alexia Duarte, a Phi Beta Kappa member, graduated from Swarthmore in 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts in economics and political science. She was most recently employed as a paralegal in the pro bono initiative
Alexia Duarte was a Phi Beta Kappa who graduated from Swarthmore in 2023 with a B.A. in economics and political science. She was most recently working as a paralegal in the pro bono initiative unit at MetroWest Legal Services in Miami and had planned to attend Harvard Law School this fall. Jared Groff and Alexia Duarte were a couple, according to the Associated Press.
Michael Groff, Joy Saini, Jared Groff and Karenna Groff are survived by the couple’s daughter, Anika, who was recently admitted into Swarthmore’s Class of 2029, school officials said. Alexia Duarte is survived by her sister, Ariana Duarte, who is studying abroad and is expected to graduate in 2026.
Karenna Groff was a former MIT soccer player named the 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year, according to the Associated Press. James Santoro, from New Jersey, was also a recent MIT graduate and had played lacrosse for the school.
“They were a wonderful family,” James’ father, John Santoro, told AP. “The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We’re all personally devastated.”
“We will celebrate their lives when and in ways that their families feel are most meaningful. While it is too soon to have details, we will share any public plans as they become available,” the school said in a statement.
Shortly before the crash, the pilot had radioed air traffic control at Columbia County Airport to say he had missed the initial approach and requested a new approach plan, officials with the National Transportation Safety Board said at a Sunday briefing. While preparing the new coordinates, air traffic controllers attempted to relay a low altitude alert three times, with no response from the pilot and no distress call, officials said.
Investigators obtained video of the final seconds of the flight, which “appears to show that the aircraft was intact and crashed at a high rate of descent into the ground,” NTSB official Todd Inman told reporters. They were set to land at Columbia County Airport but crashed roughly 10 miles (16 kilometers) to the south.
The plane was “compressed, buckled and embedded in the terrain” of a muddy agricultural field, Inman said. The pilot was flying under instrument flight rules, rather than visual flight rules, but it was too soon to determine if reduced visibility from weather conditions were a factor, he said.
The plane had been sold a year ago and had an upgraded cockpit with newer technology that was certified to Federal Aviation Administration standards, according to the NTSB. Investigators expect to be at the crash site for about a week and a full accident report could take between 12 and 24 months to complete, Inman said.
Funeral arrangements were underway, John Santoro said. “The 25 years we had with James were the best years of our lives,” he added, “and the joy and love he brought us will be enough to last a lifetime.” Copake is located about 50 miles south of Albany, near the border with Massachusetts.
