Police search for driver in double fatal Cahokia Heights hit-and-run
Police are looking for a driver they say hit and killed two people in Cahokia Heights, Illinois, Sunday night, then walked away from his car.
CAHOKIA HEIGHTS, Ill., - Police are looking for a driver they say hit and killed two people in Cahokia Heights, Illinois, Sunday night, then walked away from his car.
Authorities say a man and woman, both in their 50s, were carrying bags of items they'd just bought at a convenience store at Illinois Route 15 and Pocket Road when they were struck just before 7:30 p.m.
“They had the whole street blocked off,” Monteneil Walker said.
Walker was driving home from work at the time and got caught in the ensuing traffic, thinking it must have been a multi-car crash.
Only one car was involved, according to police.
“I saw the car. It was all smashed up,” Walker said. “I thought they took the other car before (I passed the scene).”
“That’s the sad part about it—no accountability,” Jarvis Lewis, who lives nearby, said. “It’s a sad thing because I knew the (man).”
People crossed the highway on foot again Monday night, less than 24 hours after police say the man, 55, and the woman, 51, were hit and killed. The man died at the scene; the woman died a short time later at a St. Louis hospital.
According to police, the driver of a 2010 silver BMW was heading toward St. Louis on Illinois Route 15, hitting the man and woman in the westbound lanes. The driver then walked away from the scene with a baby carrier. A juvenile, perhaps in their early teens, was walking with him.
Investigators are processing the car for evidence and hoping someone comes forward with information. People who live nearby hope so, too. They also hope for safety improvements at a stretch of highway known for deadly crashes, where people often cross on foot, going to and from that convenience store.
“As you can see a lot of teddy bear’s (crash memorials along the highway). They need to fix it because there’s wrecks all the time around here,” Lewis said.
“I think there needs to be some more lights right here, for real,” Walker said.
The driver likely committed no crime until the point where he walked away, police said. Leaving the scene of an accident that results in someone’s death is a felony.
Police do not believe the car was stolen but say it was recently sold, which investigators are looking into.
Police have not yet released the victims' names.
If you have any information, call Cahokia Heights Police at (618) 337-9505.
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