Vancouver couple pleads for help to identify hit-and-run driver who killed their dog
A Vancouver couple has been left devastated after their beloved dog was killed in a hit-and-run.
Michael Rush and Becca McMeekin are hoping for the public’s help to identify the driver, who also hit McNeekin, leaving her with minor injuries to her left shoulder.
McNeekin said she and their one-and-a-half-year-old Corgi-Pomeranian cross Tobi were out for a walk to get groceries on Saturday, Aug, 20th.
“We were taking a long route so we could just get some exercise,” she said, and added they were crossing the intersection at East Pender Street and Garden Drive just before 1 p.m. when a dark-coloured SUV came around the corner, hitting McMeekin and running over Tobi, who was on a leash.
“He looked at me and I was screaming for him to stop, and he just sped down the street,” McMeekin said. “He just left us there.”
Rush said he arrived on scene to find McMeekin surrounded by neighbours at the corner, and Tobi’s body covered with a blanket on the sidewalk.
“She made life really magical and since we’ve lost her, we just feel grief and sadness,” he said. “Every moment with her felt like the most exciting time, because she was always so excited to be around us and with us and doing things with us.”
Surveillance video from the area shows the suspect vehicle, believed to be a grey Jeep Patriot, travelling on East Hastings Street before the collision.
Rush said the intersection where the hit and run occurred is a route people use to avoid traffic on East Hastings Street.
“Unfortunately because of that, we lost the most adventurous and exciting part of our lives, and the thing we loved the most,” he said. “In addition to finding the driver, we would really like to ask city hall to have better traffic control in our neighbourhood, which is full of schools.”
Vancouver Police Const. Jason Doucette said it is a common route for people who are familiar with the area to try and beat traffic at the busy intersection of Nanaimo and East Hastings Street.
“The vehicle didn’t stop, he didn’t get out to check on the dog, to check on the woman. He just simply continued on eastbound towards Nanaimo (Street.) That’s the last direction we have,” he said. “If you happen to recognize the SUV or the driver, even if you think it may be that person, please give our investigators a call.”
McMeekin said they held a memorial for Tobi in the neighbourhood, where many friends came to say good-bye.
“She used to travel with me. We spent every day together,” McMeekin said. “She was so happy.”
Anyone with information can contact the Vancouver Police Department's Hit-and-Run Section at (604) 717-6846, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-4477.
Police want to identify the driver of this vehicle. (Vancouver police handout)
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police arrest 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole Porsche and ran over its owner
Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.
Woman nearly shut out of mother's estate sues brother in B.C. Supreme Court – and wins
Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.
Woman shot by B.C. police was Colombian refugee with young daughter, advocate says
Advocates have identified the woman who died this week after being shot by police in Surrey, B.C., as a South American refugee who was raising a young daughter.
3 injured after man with knife enters Montreal-area mosque
Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.
Kamala Harris tells Oprah any intruder to her home is 'getting shot'
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris on Thursday issued a warning to any potential home intruder: 'If somebody breaks in my house, they're getting shot.'
Teen arrested in New Brunswick after emergency alert; 5 people in custody
A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.
On the trail of the mystery woman whose company licensed exploding pagers
What Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono, 49, the Italian-Hungarian CEO and owner of Hungary-based BAC Consulting, says she hasn't done is make the exploding pagers that killed 12 people and wounded more than 2,000 in Lebanon this week.
'We're still pushing hard': Search for missing Manitoba boy continues, RCMP find tracks
The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.
Video released of person of interest after cat is allegedly set on fire in Orillia, Ont.
Provincial police investigating the death of a cat that was allegedly set on fire in Orillia earlier this week released surveillance video of a person of interest in the case.