HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A Houston couple says their 24-year-old grandson was “only trying to help” when he was struck and killed in a hit-and-run crash early Saturday.
Lawanna and Lorick Jeffery are mourning the loss of Sincere Barrette, who authorities say was hit just after 5 a.m. along the 610 Loop near the Galleria area.
According to Houston police, Barrette had been involved in a minor crash while attempting to move onto the freeway shoulder. After the collision, he got out of his vehicle to check the damage – and, his family says, to make sure the other driver was OK.
“He hit the car and went to make sure they were OK,” Lawanna Jeffery said.
Moments later, investigators say, another vehicle struck Barrette and fled the scene. The driver has not been identified.
“The coroner’s office called, and it is the worst conversation or five-minute phone call anybody could get in this world,” Lawanna Jeffery said.
Her husband made a direct appeal to the driver responsible.
“Whoever hit my grandson – he has a mother, father, and sister, plenty of friends. He’s a good kid,” Lorick Jeffery said.
The couple is now calling for the driver to come forward and for improvements to roadway safety, including cameras that record footage rather than streaming it.
The Texas Department of Transportation confirmed that many of its traffic cameras provide live feeds but do not record video.
“I’m from New York. In New York, our cameras record everything,” Lawanna Jeffery said. “If this had happened in New York, he would be in jail. Because this is a crime scene.”
Police say the driver who struck Barrette remains at large. Anyone with information about the unknown vehicle or in this case, is urged to contact the HPD Hit-and-Run Unit at 713-247-4072 or speak anonymously with Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.
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