GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A Gwinnett County family is grieving the loss of one brother while praying for the recovery of another after a hit-and-run crash early Sunday morning.
Police say Salvador Vargas-Pablo was killed and his brother, Bernardino Vargas-Pablo, was critically injured while the two men were working on a disabled vehicle in a turn lane along Killian Hill Road near Lilburn.
Investigators say the crash happened around 4 a.m., when it was still dark outside. Police say the driver who hit the brothers was traveling without headlights.
Neighbor Robert Post, who lives near the crash scene, said the commotion woke him from sleep.
“I didn’t hear the crash, but when I was in my bedroom sleeping, all this commotion woke me up,” Post said.
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According to Gwinnett police, the brothers were trying to repair a broken-down vehicle when they were struck.
Post said he suspected investigators would quickly turn to nearby camera systems for help.
“They got some cameras up there, those Flock cameras right up the road there across the service station,” he said.
Police say those cameras helped investigators identify a beige Honda Odyssey with a distinctive sticker on the rear window.
Authorities later arrested Trudon Kassansa and charged him with first-degree homicide by vehicle in connection with the crash.
“I’m not happy with that. I don’t want anybody to get killed, that’s for sure,” Post said.
Family members say Bernardino remains hospitalized but is showing signs of improvement.
His son told Channel 2 Gwinnett County Bureau Chief Matt Johnson that his father is getting better, though he still faces a long road to recovery.
Investigators have not released information on how fast the van was traveling at the time of the crash.
Neighbors say speeding has long been a concern on the stretch of Killian Hill Road where the brothers were hit.
“They don’t pay attention to the speed limit. Something needs to be done about that,” Post said.
Kassansa remains in jail without bond and is facing multiple charges.
GoFundMe accounts have been set up for Salvador Vargas-Pablo and Bernardino Vargas-Pablo.