The N.C. Highway Patrol is continuing to search for answers in a fatal hit-and-run accident that occurred on US 421 near Siler City last month.
Eddie Tapia, 30, of Burlington was killed at around 6 a.m. on October 14 as he was walking with his wife along U.S. 421 North, just north of Sam Fields Road.
Highway Patrol reports said Tapia walked into the roadway and was struck by a passenger vehicle. The vehicle failed to stop, the patrol said, and after hitting Tapia continued to travel north on U.S. 421.
Tapia was later pronounced dead at the scene.
Trooper R.N. Cook is investigating the case.
“Unfortunately there wasn’t a lot of physical evidence at the scene as far as the vehicle goes,” Cook said. “Right now, what we know about the car has come from the witness interviews. We haven’t been able to determine anything specific about the vehicle. I am going to interview her again this week to see if we learn anything new.”
Tapia’s death occurred just over a year after another unrelated fatal hit-and-run incident on the same stretch of road.
On September 12, 2017, 18-year-old Thaj Singleton of Siler City was killed on U.S. 421 as he was driving home from work early that morning. Authorities believe that the moped Singleton was driving was struck from behind by a box truck traveling north.
Eight months later, Singleton’s family placed his photograph and information about the incident on a billboard near the site of the collision, with a caption that read: “I died here 09/12/2017. Do you know who hit me?”
Authorities are asking anyone with information about the Tapia incident or the Singleton incident to call the State Highway Patrol at (800) 662-7956