73 YEAR OLD IN WHEELCHAIR DRAGGED 200 FEET IN HIT AND RUN

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

 

73-year-old in wheelchair dragged 200 feet in fatal hit-and-run, Texas family says

BY MIKE STUNSON

AUGUST 12, 2024 8:02 AM

 

A 73-year-old man was killed in a hit-and-run crash as he operated his wheelchair for his daily McDonald’s breakfast, according to family and Texas police.

 

The fatal crash happened just after 6 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 8, in Pasadena, a southeast suburb of Houston. The Pasadena Police Department said the driver of a “dark-colored pickup truck” struck the man, who was on a motorized cart in a crosswalk.

 

The man, identified in a GoFundMe as Erasmo Perez, died after being taken to a hospital, police said.

 

Family members said in the GoFundMe that Perez was dragged 200 feet by the “cowardly” driver, who is accused of fleeing the scene.

 

“He was tortured, that’s the way I feel,” David Perez, one of the victim’s sons, told KRIV. “He was dragged like an animal. It was an inhumane thing to do to another human being.”

 

Perez was killed on his daily routine of going to a McDonald’s inside a Wal-Mart for a sausage biscuit and coffee, according to the GoFundMe.

 

It was an activity the grandfather considered the highlight of his day, David Perez told KHOU.

 

The crash scene was on the street in front of the Wal-Mart parking lot.

 

“He’s a well-respected man around there,” David Perez told the station. “Everybody knew him rolling in that wheelchair. That’s his way of going places.”

 

The wheelchair, the son said, was discovered tossed in a dumpster after being broken into pieces, KPRC reported.

 

Now, the family searches for answers. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Pasadena Police Department at 731-540-5879.

 

“Be the honest man and just come forward, man,” David Perez said in his interview with KPRC. “Nobody wants to hurt you. We just want justice for our fam, for our father.”