South Jersey Man Charged In November Crash That Killed Lower Merion High School Principal Sean Hughes
CAMDEN, N.J. (CBS) -- A South Jersey man has been charged in the November crash that killed Lower Merion High School Principal Sean Hughes. The Camden County Prosecutor's Office says 54-year-old Azuka Ossai, of Pine Hill, was arrested Thursday and charged with vehicular homicide.
Authorities with the Camden County Prosecutor's Office say they've identified the man responsible for the deadly crash. The driver turned himself in at the Winslow Township Police Department Thursday afternoon.
Four months after the crash that killed Hughes, police have made an arrest in the case. The Camden County Prosecutor's Office is charging the 54-year-old Ossai with vehicular homicide and assault by auto.
The deadly crash happened at the intersection of Fleming Pike and Hays Road in Winslow Township on the morning of Nov. 13, 2021.
Authorities say Ossai was speeding in a Mercedes SUV when he blew a stop sign and crashed into a Ford SUV, driven by Hughes. Hughes was driving his son Nolan to a soccer game at the time of the collision.
The 51-year-old principal died from his injuries hours later at the hospital. His son was seriously hurt.
Two days later, all 10 schools in the Lower Merion School District were closed as students and staff mourned Hughes's death.
Here's what one parent told Eyewitness News that day.
"Both of my sons graduated from this school and he was just an amazing person and such a great loss," Ofrit Barash, a parent, said.
Hundreds of students packed the parking lot to honor the beloved principal's life.
Some left flowers at a large makeshift memorial.
"I keep thinking about his kid Nolan and what a terrible experience for him that must have been so the only proper thing I could do was to come and pay my respects," student Oliver Browning said.
The impact of that crash is still felt at Lower Merion High School.
"It was such sudden news. It was just, we woke up one morning and it was really surprising because it's one of those things you really don't expect," Ani Annapragada, a senior, said.
"I'm glad that the person was caught because it shook up the whole community," another student said.
Four months later, the character counts the motto Hughes instilled in his students' lives on.
"Walking through the school, you see all the notes and the posters and things that the kids have made and even though I had never met him personally, it was incredibly touching and you could tell it was real," Elise Miller said.
The Lower Merion High School crew team named their new boat after Hughes and in May, the district is encouraging people to run Team Hughes in the Broad Street Run. On their website, it says donations will benefit his children's trust.
The suspect was processed at the police department and later released.
The Lower Merion School District had no comment on the arrest.
A GoFundMe page has raised $74,000 to support the principal's family.
CBS3's Madeleine Wright and Jasmine Payoute contributed to this report.
