'Very Handsome, Very Caring': Mother Remembers Son, 15, Killed In Hit-&-Run
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The mother of a teenage hit-and-run victim says her entire family is heartbroken.
Someone drove off after hitting and killing 15-year-old Antonio DeMeueles near Isanti Thursday night. The Blaine High School sophomore was skateboarding when a white pickup with a topper hit him.
Surveillance from a nearby business captured an image of that truck.
"Very bright kid. Very handsome, very caring," his mother, Renee Salazar, said.
They are just a few of the ways Salazar is remembering her son. She said Antonio had just turned 15 last month, liked to fish, skateboard, he was active at his church and his dream was to become a chef.
"You never think of death. You think of other things, but you never think of death," said Salazar.
Around quarter after 8 p.m. last night, authorities were called to 285th Avenue near Isanti. A passer-by had found Antonio in the road with serious injuries. Rescuers attempted CPR, but Antonio was later pronounced dead at Cambridge Medical Center.
Because it was dark out and Antonio was wearing dark clothes, investigators think the driver may not even know they hit a person.
The driver was going west towards Highway 65, the same direction as Antonio. Investigators believe the truck hit him from behind as he skateboarded down the middle of the road.
"Antonio was a smaller-statured boy, so we don't believe there is going to be a lot of damage to the vehicle," Chief Deputy Lisa Lovering said.
Renee Salazar said she and her 8-year-old son are relying on God to get them through this heart-breaking tragedy.
"He says mom, 'I don't have a brother anymore?' I said 'you do, your brother has wings now, but you still have your brother,'" Salazar said.
Salazar wants to thank the people who stopped to call 911 and did CPR on her son. She hopes to meet them so she can personally thank them.
Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff's office tip line at 763-691-2426.