A Peoria man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for a hit-and-run collision that killed a 28-year-old in 2023.
In July, John Timothy Jr., 41, had been found guilty of leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident involving a death. He struck Akeem Alexander with a Land Rover in the 1900 block of West Howett Street, the Peoria County State’s Attorney’s Office said.
The impact of the collision was severe enough that Alexander was thrown about 254 feet, his brother said during the sentencing hearing Friday. Alexander’s brother pleaded with Peoria County Circuit Judge Paul Bauer to give Timothy the maximum sentence of 15 years, saying that it would set a standard for similar incidents in the future, the State’s Attorney’s Office said.
Bauer agreed with Alexander’s sentiments, saying that he acknowledged the pain that the family was going through over the past two years.
In the early morning hours of Aug. 28, 2023, Peoria police officers responded to the scene after they received a call from the detection service in Timothy’s Land Rover that reported a crash. Upon arrival, they found Alexander lying face down in the road near a bicycle. He was pronounced dead at the scene, but the vehicle was not there.
Police later found the Land Rover on Antoinette Street with heavy damage to the front end. Timothy turned himself into police two days after the crash, but originally told police that his vehicle had been stolen.
However, surveillance footage showed Timothy leaving a nearby club in the SUV, running a red light and colliding with Alexander and fleeing the scene.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: After a hit-and-run, a Peoria man’s SUV led police to him. Now he’s going to prison
Reporting by Zach Roth, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
