Family Of Child Killed In DUI Collision Robbed Of State Grant
(CBS) – A Skokie family coping with the death of their 8 year old son is now the victim of a crime, ripped off by a crook.
Carter Vo was killed last year while riding his bike.
Recently, the family received a state grant: money given to victims of violent crimes. But the check never arrived.
CBS 2's Susanna Song explains what happened.
It's one stop Nhu Vo makes before work every day: to his son's grave. A little more than a year ago, 8-year-old Carter was run over by a car while he was riding his bicycle on the sidewalk.
Hanin Goma, 18, was charged with driving under the influence of drugs and was sentenced to 5 years in prison.
Today, Carter's family keeps his room unchanged. Same bed, same toys, but Nhu Vo and his wife have created a wall of memories. Their son's smile livens the room.
"It's comforting," the father says.
After they buried Carter, the Vos applied for a state grant to help pay for funeral costs
"Nobody expects, plans for your children to die. It was unexpected for us," the father says.
In late January, the attorney general's office awarded the Vos $4,000. The check was sent out in May.
It turns out that check never made it. Instead, it arrived at a southwest side apartment building. Someone got a hold of it and cashed it. Nhu Vo says it's not his signature on the document.
CBS 2 learned someone at the Court of Claims mistyped the number for the check, which led to the wrong address.
Nhu Vo says the theft "basically made our family a victim again."
State officials say the wrong address was already in their system because someone at that apartment applied for a grant as well. But they had been denied.
Meanwhile, Chase Bank says it held the stolen funds and closed the person's account. The check was sent back to the Illinois Treasurer's Office, and the Vo family should get the money early next week.
The family plans to file a police report and pursue criminal charges.
