Police need help solving the hit and run case that killed a Fresno teenager. Investigators are looking for the driver of an early 2000 model Mitsubishi Eclipse. It has front end damage from the accident.
Tiani Philpot was walking in the street on Marks near Emerson when she was hit from behind. It was after 11pm Sunday and the driver likely didn't see her.
The victim’s father spends time at a vigil made for her on Tuesday afternoon, thinking about the beautiful life lost here.
“I’m out of it, even now. My thoughts come and go as far as the process of dealing with this,” said Frank Philpot, Tiani’s father.
Friends of the 15-year-old Fresno High School student drop by to grieve and say goodbye. As the vigil grows, Fresno police are learning more about who may have hit her. Investigators say they're looking for the driver of an early 2000 model Mitsubishi Eclipse. They aren't saying what color it could be, but it is banged up.
“It’s our opinion that someone out there knows of this incident and knows of a vehicle that recently sustained front-end damage,” said Lt. Tony Bennink of the Fresno Police Department.
Police say after the accident, Philpot may have been lying by herself for a half hour. Neighbors say they'll keep an eye out for the suspect's car.
“People like that who just take off on someone, I consider a coward,” said Kenneth Tinzly, who lives nearby the accident scene.
As family plans Tiani's funeral, her father says knowing exactly what led to her death would at least give him closure.
“It's not going to bring her back. If it's God's way, He has her with Him, I can understand that. But at least let us have justice to know what happened, why it happened and who done it,” said Philpot.
If you have any information, call Fresno Police at 621-5058.
