‘We just want justice’: Family of man struck and killed on Red Hill six months ago still without answers

In the early hours of a blizzard-stricken Jan. 17, Hussein Hassoun was struck on the Red Hill Valley Parkway as he checked for damage to his snowbound van.

The driver who hit him got away.

Hassoun died less than two weeks later after undergoing three surgeries in four days, including one that saw his right leg amputated.

Among the last things the 67-year-old told his family before being placed in an induced coma was the type of vehicle that struck him: a city snowplow.

These were his words: I got hit by a city snowplow, it threw me three to four metres, and then two guys found me on the ground and called 911,'" his son, Mohammed, said at the time.

Mohammed said his father told police in two statements on the day of the hit-and-run - one at the scene of the collision, the other at the hospital - that a city snowplow hit him.

But six months later the grieving family remain without answers.

Mohammed said police have yet to inform him, his mother and four siblings of who struck and killed Hassoun, and why they fled the scene. He said investigators have largely kept mum on the status of their investigation, only saying forensic work is continuing as they look for more witnesses.

It's been very frustrating," Mohammed said, struggling to find words. They keep telling us they need more witnesses - but we're six months out now. It's like, how can you still be looking for witnesses?"

Hamilton police said Thursday their probe into the collision is ongoing but progressing.

Once the investigation is complete, we will issue a media release to advise of the findings," said spokesperson Jackie Penman.

Police did not release any information about the crash until three weeks after it happened.

On Feb. 7 - 21 days after the collision - police said in a release Hassoun was checking for damage to his van stuck in the snow on the Red Hill near the Queenston Road bridge when another northbound vehicle struck him and fled. They did not name Hassoun and made no mention of the vehicle's type.

Two days later, after many inquiries from The Spectator, police confirmed in a statement that a snowplow was involved in the collision - a fact yet to be included in any media release about the hit-and-run. They refused to say whether it was city plow or a plow contracted by the city. They also refused to comment on the length of time it took to inform the public about the collision or to provide details concerning the vehicle's type.

The city declined to comment Friday citing the active police investigation.

Hassoun's family believes the long gap between when the crash happened and when the public was informed - along with the absence of key details such as Hassoun's identity and the vehicle that struck him - could have affected the police investigation.

Who's going to remember an accident to the finest details a few weeks after it happened?" said Hassoun's daughter, Farah. It puts the whole case at a disadvantage. We feel like (police) didn't do their due diligence."

The father of five's presence has loomed large in the months since his death.

He was felt when Farah give birth to her first son, which she named after her late father; when Mohammed appeared on Shark Tank" to pitch his fledgling prickly-pear beverage startup; when his daughter was accepted into medical school; when his son graduated from university.

All these milestones we've had, these big wins. We feel like we can't celebrate them to the fullest because my father isn't here," said Farah.

The family is renewing their pleas for anyone with information about the crash to come forward in hopes of bringing closure to what's been a months-long emotional roller-coaster.

I want the police to prove to us that the driver who hit him wasn't negligent," said Mohammed. We just want justice."

Sebastian Bron is a reporter at The Spectator. sbron@thespec.com