Couple hit, driver runs, near Carley Regan's fatal crash scene
The back end of Spencer Pinkney's Nissan Sentra shows the aftermath of a hit-and-run crash that happened in Aldergrove, just metres from where Carley Regan was killed in 2003.
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Updated: July 17, 2009 8:54 AM
A young Aldergrove couple are lucky to be alive and well after their car was rear-ended by a hit-and-run driver suspected of being impaired behind the wheel on Tuesday evening.
The crash occurred on 256 Street near 36 Avenue, only a few hundred yards from the scene of teenager Carley Regan's 2003 tragic death. The hit-and-run driver whose car killed Regan, Paul Wettlaufer, is currently back in the news as he is seeking to have his 10-year ban on driving lifted four years earlier than the court imposed in 2003.
In Tuesday's crash, Spencer Pinkney and his friend, Julia Pahlke, were headed south on 256 Street in Pinkney's Nissan Sentra at about 6:30 p.m. when they were rammed by a late model black Dodge Dakota.
The force of the impact crushed the rear of the Nissan and pushed it ahead several yards before the motor died. There are lengthy skid marks, showing that the Dakota driver had attempted to brake before hitting the small car.
The young couple were in a daze but suffered only soft tissue injuries.
"They were pretty shaken up," said Julia's brother, Tyler, adding that the two were treated and released from hospital that night.
There were numerous witnesses, however, who then saw the Dakota driver pull out of the back of the Nissan immediately after the collision, make a U-turn, and after hitting a tree, he raced north on 256 Street.
One witness followed the Dakota down backroads as far as the area of 248 Street and 40 Avenue, where the truck, badly leaking fluids, died after hitting a mailbox. The driver then fled on foot.
By this time Langley RCMP and a police dog team had arrived on the scene and within minutes they collared a suspect near a horse stable.
"The police told us the man was very drunk," said Tyler.
"I find it so ironic that this happened so close to Carley's death, with that story back in the news right now."
Police were not able to release information on the case as it is still under investigation. Any witnesses who have not yet come forward to make a statement are asked to call Langley RCMP at 604-532-3200.
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