Family and friends gathered to remember a Chicago tow truck operator who was struck and killed in a hit-and-run crash in Wisconsin on Christmas Eve.
More than 100 people turned out for the vigil to honor Hussain Farhat, who was working his route on Interstate 94 in Waukesha, Wisconsin on Tuesday when he was killed.
“When you look around in some way you feel proud that he’s loved by so many people, like there’s people here that aren’t even from our village and they still came and showed support,” family friend Sal Arman said.
According to family, Farhat moved to Chicago earlier this year, fleeing the ongoing war in Gaza. He was working as a tow truck operator to help provide for his family, and it was that dedication and perseverance that stood out to loved ones who are remembering him after his tragic death.
“His nickname…was ‘father of the village,’ so he was one of the more prominent members of the village,” Arman said. “Everybody knew him. He would never say no to anybody.”
According to police, Farhat was working to tow a disabled vehicle when he was struck by a minivan on the shoulder of Interstate 94 near Summit. Prosecutors allege the vehicle was traveling at approximately 80 miles per hour when Farhat was struck, according to WTMJ.
According to WTMJ, the Waukesha Sheriff’s Department received a tip about the vehicle involved in the crash, and the driver turned himself in to police. He appeared in court Thursday, where he was charged with hit-and-run involving a fatality, a felony, and was issued a citation in connection to the crash.
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Now, Farhat’s family is left to pick up the pieces, as he left behind a wife and two children, with a third due any day.
“He left a very difficult situation back home with everything that is happening a bad economy and a big war that obviously everybody knows about to come here for a better future and it was cut short,” Arman said. “It was very sad to try to run away from something like that to come here to lose your life trying to support your family.”
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A funeral service is scheduled for Friday, according to the family.
