DPS locates car believed to be involved in fatal hit-and-run in Trinity County
Vehicle apparently involved in another accident a couple hours later
By JESSICA SAVAGE
The Lufkin Daily News
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
LUFKIN — A vehicle found Monday that is believed to be involved in a fatal hit-and-run incident early Saturday appeared to have damage consistent with that wreck and another wreck it was involved in a couple hours later, said a state trooper.
The name of the driver and the area where the car was found are not being released because it could hinder an ongoing investigation, said Trooper Rae Lee of the Texas Department of Public Safety office in Coldspring who is investigating the case. Lee said she expected an arrest in the near future, but was quick to add the department had "a lot of ground work ahead before an arrest."
Richard Michael Tolly, 35 of Lufkin, died Saturday morning after he was struck by a car traveling west on state Highway 94 outside Jimmy's Bar in Trinity County, west of Lufkin. Tolly had left the bar with his girlfriend and was walking along the highway when the car struck him, killing him on impact.
Witnesses said the car never slowed down, except to turn around in the parking lot at Jimmy's Bar before heading back toward Lufkin.
A side mirror on the vehicle, knocked off during the collision, was recovered at the scene and sent to a local dealership to determine the car's owner, Lee said. A match came back Monday and Lee said the department's forensic team is now processing possible DNA evidence found on the car. She said the vehicle had damage to the right side of the vehicle, including the front fender and windshield. Other damage noted on the vehicle is believed to be from a minor collision the car was reportedly involved in at 3:15 a.m. Saturday, approximately two hours after the fatal hit-and-run in Trinity County.
Lee thanked the public and said she developed the "promising lead" after receiving several calls from people with information about a silver Kia with right-side damage. Lee said a phone call she received from someone with information about the second wreck helped her track down the vehicle Monday. No further information about the second wreck is being released at this time.
