A North Texas family, grieving the loss of a husband and father killed in a crash with another driver, says closure cannot come until that driver is caught.
At about 9 p.m. on July 31, 52-year-old Billy Ray Jones, had just recently left his home on his motorcycle and was near the QuickTrip gas station along East Rendon-Crowley Road when police said the driver of a light blue or silver Toyota Camry turned in front of him, causing him to crash his motorcycle.
Jones's body is then believed to have hit the Camry.
Fort Worth police shared the gas station's surveillance video with NBC 5 and are asking for the public’s help to find the driver of the Camry who reportedly stuck around the fatal scene for a few moments before driving away.
“This month has been the worst month that I could ever imagine in my life,” Sherri Jones, Billy Ray's widow, told NBC 5 late last month.
“It’s just not right for this person to be able -- I don’t know how they sleep at night,” she said. “Because I don’t sleep at night and that’s devastating not knowing who’s out there that’s responsible for this.”
“My husband was ejected off the motorcycle,” said Jones.
Jones and the couple's 15-year-old daughter were at the family’s house about three miles away. They had not heard from Jones and checked an app they use as a family to know where each person is and noticed he had not moved from that spot in a while.
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Jones rushed to the scene and was told to head to the hospital nearby.
Shortly after the crash, the driver did something that has compounded Jones’ grief.
“He pulled into the QT and he talked to people and sat around a while,” she said. “They [witnesses] thought he was going to talk to police and he drove off and he left.”
Police confirm the driver drove into the convenience store parking lot.
What may have been an accident has now turned into a search for the driver who now faces a felony charge related to the crash.
Fort Worth police shared surveillance video with multiple angles showing the suspect’s vehicle, although the driver does not get out of his car and police said the license plate is hard to read.
Jones has been posting fliers offering a $10,000 reward for an arrest in the case.
Police are also making a public plea to witnesses and to the driver who faces a charge of ‘accident involving personal injury or death.’
“If they have any, one ounce of any sympathy or empathy just come forward and talk to our detectives and let’s get to the bottom of this,” said Officer “Jimmy” Pollozani. “Anybody with any information just please come forward and let’s get some closure for this family.”
“I can’t have peace until this person, you know, is in custody,” said Jones. “I want to see this person tell me ‘sorry’ or something. I need some kind of closure.”
Police only have a vague description of the driver but said he was in a light blue or silver Toyota Camry between a 2007- 2010 year model.
Anyone with information is urged to call FWPD’s Traffic Investigation Unit at 817-329-4889.
