AURORA, Colo. — An Aurora family is calling for change after a man and his dog were killed in a hit-and-run crash Thursday evening.
The crash happened around 7:30 p.m. on April 3 near the intersection of E. Wesley Drive and E. Caspian Circle, located in the Sterling Hills neighborhood. When they arrived, they found a man and a dog at the scene.
The dog died instantly in the crash and the man was transported to a hospital, where he later died, police said. He was identified by family members as Rafael "Alberto" Buitrago.
Investigators determined that a white or silver SUV had been speeding westbound on W. Wesley Drive when it lost control and struck the man and dog, who were walking on the sidewalk. The suspect then fled from the scene in his car, police said.
On Friday at 2:45 a.m., the suspect turned himself in to the police. He has been identified as Michael Graham-Hyde, 73. He faces charges of careless driving resulting in death and leaving the scene of a crash involving an injury.
Luz Buitrago, Alberto's wife, said she was preparing dinner when she saw police cars and left the house to see what was happening. She described the moments after as "like everything was a dream. I don't realize that what I'm hearing is real."
Alberto's family said a camera captured the driver getting out of his car to see what happened before fleeing.
"What they notice on the video is that this guy left his car, he gets out from the car, he saw my husband, and when he saw his condition, he went back to his car and he left," said Luz. "He is 73 years old. They don't [find] any substance or anything like alcohol or drugs or anything, so he was 100% conscious that he's driving."
Investigators do not believe that drugs or alcohol were factors in the crash. Graham-Hyde posted bond and was released from the Aurora Municipal Detention Center.
Alberto's nieces, Nathalie and Valerie Munoz, told Denver7 they are frustrated that Graham-Hyde was able to post bond.
"The second you hit someone and you get out and look at them and then get back in the car and drive away, that was intentional. You did this with malice. This is not a hit-and-run. He wanted to hurt someone. He hurt and killed two innocent souls and it is beyond frustrating knowing that he is at home, sitting on a couch with his friends, with his family, and even if he does go to court, he gets to say goodbye to them," Nathalie said.
When Valerie first heard the news, she turned to social media to ask for help in finding the person responsible for the death of her uncle. At last check, the TikTok she created garnered 260,800 views and was sent to more than 2,000 people.
"I think that the standards need to be the same across the board, regardless of who you are or where you're from. And I don't think that people pay attention to these things when they happen to people of color, when they happen to immigrants. And I certainly think that, of course, this is something that needs to be paid attention to across the board. But in our case and a lot of other cases, I think that the treatment needs to be the same," Valerie said.
After 30 years of marriage, Luz and Alberto had plans to retire and travel with their dog, Nova. Now, she is processing a heartbreaking loss.
- Hear more from Luz in the video player below
"If I'm being honest, the amount of people who have shown up that I didn't realize he's touched, it's beautiful. It's also really sad," Nathalie said.
The family has created a GoFundMe online fundraiser in order to pay for funeral expenses.
"We want to make sure that this isn't so much focused on the monster who did this but on this beautiful love that even though he has shattered our family, our family is stronger than this and we are together and we have her back and we are going to somehow survive this," said Nathalie.
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