A Georgia truck driver has been arrested and charged in the hit and run death of a North Carolina trucker.
The Georgia State Patrol reports that on May 31 Aleksandr Petrovich Shabunko of Asheville, N.C. had stepped out of his tractor trailer on the shoulder of south-bound Interstate 85 near Athens and was struck and killed by a box truck.
A witness said that after striking 57-year-old Shabunko the driver of the box truck pulled over, got out and then left the scene, according to jacksonherald.com.
Troopers began looking for the truck which witnesses said had a graphic of “a picture frame, artwork in red and green and the word ‘foodservice’ in the company name.”
The force of the impact with Shabunko knocked off the box truck’s passenger side mirror.
The driver of the box truck, 32-year-old Yoan Oscar Munoz of Covington, Ga. was arrested Wednesday and charged with vehicular homicide, failing to report an accident resulting in death and leaving the scene of an accident. He was released after posting $12,000 bond.
Shabunko had been making a delivery to Atlanta when he pulled over near Dry Pond Road to check on his rig. He was a self-employed truck driver who had immigrated to the U.S. in 1993 from Belarus in Eastern Europe. He left behind four children, according to onlineathens.com.
“He was a very helpful man, who lent his hand out to others in a time of need. He was a giving person who gave back to the community,” his son, Igor Shaunko, said.
A gofundme account has been set up to help with Shabunko’s funeral costs.
