VIDEO: California Deputy Killed in Hit-and-Run
A Ventura County (Calif.) Sheriff's deputy killed Tuesday morning in a hit-and-run crash involving a driver arrested on suspicion of DUI was identified as an 11-year department veteran who pursued his passion for law enforcement after coming to the United States from Ukraine, reports KNBC.
Dep. Eugene Kostiuchenko, 41, was just wrapping up a traffic stop near the Lewis Road on-ramp on the northbound 101 Freeway in Camarillo at about 1:15 a.m. when he was struck and killed. The driver involved in the traffic stop had already left the scene, but a second deputy who responded to the traffic stop saw the DUI driver sideswipe his colleague as he was outside his patrol vehicle, said Ventura County Sheriff's Sgt. Eric Buschow.
Kostiuchenko was originally from Ukraine, and worked for Ventura County's Emergency Preparedness Office. Colleagues said he wanted to become a deputy and became a U.S. citizen to be able to do so.
The hit-and-run driver later crashed on the northbound 101 Freeway near Las Posas Road. The 25-year-old driver was arrested on suspicion of felony hit-and-run and DUI, according to the sheriff's department.
