CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. — Monday was Diane Hankle’s birthday, and she got the worst news of her life. Her 42-year-old son Antwain was hit by a car and killed in a hit-and-run on Losson Road in Cheektowaga.
Diane lives in Illinois and was on the phone with one of her granddaughters in Cheektowaga, but she could tell something was wrong.
“She comes back, and she says 'Grandma we have trouble. There are police cars and ambulances outside',” Diane said.
42-year-old Antwain Rominey Hankle, Diane’s eldest child, was cleaning snow off of his car at around 7 p.m. Monday when he was struck and killed by an oncoming driver.
His wife told Diane immediately.
“She said it was [Antwain] because ‘I see his shoe in the street.’ Apparently, he got hit by a car, they drug him and kept going,” Diane said. “Oh my god, my heart sunk, not my baby, not my baby. Yeah, he’s 42 years old, but he’s my baby, my firstborn.”
For Diane this was her worst fears come true.
Antwain was a husband and father of three.
Diane shared that she has always had a bad feeling about the amount of snowfall that Western New York gets since Antwain moved her nine years ago.
“I was always fearful of something happening with that snow, it never sat well with me,” Diane said.
“It’s just senseless he lost his life in this way,” said Lt. Jeff Schmidt with the Cheektowaga Police Department.
Cheektowaga Police say that the driver has still not been identified, and they were last seen driving West on Losson Road toward Union Road.
The vehicle is described as a gray, newer model Ford Explorer with front-end damage on the passenger side.
No license plate number has been identified at this time.
“This is a horrible tragedy that has happened here, and our hearts go out to the family that has to suffer from this,” Lt. Schmidt said.
Diane shared her message for that driver.
“How could you hit a person, he’s a big guy, you know you hit him. How dare you keep going and just drive,” Diane said. “I’d say to that person, have a conscious. God will certainly deal with you, but please turn yourself in.”
Anybody with information about the hit-and-run is asked to contact the Cheektowaga Police Accident Investigation Unit at 716-686-3527.
