Local News

Family wants answers in Thanksgiving hit-and-run

The family of a man who was killed in a hit and run in November of 2020 is hoping someone will come forth with information about the driver who did it. Phillip Willoughby Jr. died in the vicinity of N.C. Highway 231 and 264 in Middlesex. His body was found on Nov. 28, just two days after Thanksgiving.

Posted Updated

By
Indira Eskieva
, WRAL Eastern North Carolina reporter
MIDDLESEX, N.C. — The family of a man who was killed in a hit and run in November of 2020 is hoping someone will come forth with information about the driver who did it. Phillip Willoughby Jr. died in the vicinity of N.C. Highway 231 and 264 in Middlesex. His body was found on Nov. 28, just two days after Thanksgiving.

"It definitely make it harder to even accept that it happened," says Willoughby's sister, Amy Fannin. "He was a great person. He wanted to help everybody. That’s what his life consisted of — helping other people."

Fannin believes her brother ran out of gas on the night of Nov. 27, 2020, left his car at a nearby Dollar General and was walking home when he was hit. She says that a Middlesex police officer spoke to him several times that night, but Willoughby told him that he was waiting on a ride.

"That is probably the hardest part about that evening, knowing that that could have saved my brother’s life," Fannin said through tears.

She wants to get answers for her brother and for her mother, who hasn’t been the same since her son’s death. Jo Ann Futch says even if it was just an accident, she hopes the person who did this steps forward.

"I wake up in the morning, and it’s the first thing on my mind and, of course, the last thing when I go to bed," Futch said.

The N.C. Highway Patrol posted on Facebook, asking people to share information and tips related to Willoughby’s death. Tips can be sent directly to law enforcement by dialing *HP(47) or the Nash County SHP office at 252-446-8144. Independent crime-stoppers group, The Cold Case Team, is offering up to $15,000 in reward money for information leading to an arrest. Tips can be sent by calling 252-406-6736.

Related Topics

 Credits 

Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.