Suspect in US hit-and-run fatal accident flees to Thailand

A US woman suspected in a deadly hit-and-run has reportedly fled to Thailand. The FBI says the woman, Tubtim “Sue” Howson, from Oakland Township, Michigan is suspected of hitting and killing a 22 year old man on New Year’s Day.

According to WXYZ, the FBI filed a criminal complaint alleging that the 57 year old fled to Thailand two days after the crash that took the life of Benjamin Kable.

The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office says the driver hit Kable just before 6am on January 1, along Rochester Road. Kable was pronounced dead at the scene.

Kable was a senior at Michigan State University and was on the way home from a New Year’s Eve party at the time of the crash.

His family says an Uber driver dropped him off near Rochester Road about 10 minutes from his home. The victim’s father, Michael Kable, commented on the mentality of a hit-and-run driver.

“It’s difficult to understand how someone can just drive away and leave somebody dying on the road and just the lack of empathy and humanity that, that would take.”

According to the criminal complaint, a witness saw Howson at the scene of the crash. Her BMW was seized but she had allegedly evaded arrest. The sheriff’s office says she was on her way to work when she hit Kable.

The FBI says Howson is a US citizen but is originally from Thailand. She allegedly told a close associate that she thought she killed someone. Her associates say that they tried to convince her to turn herself in, but her response was, “No cops, no cops.”

Howson was found to have departed Michigan on January 3 on a one-way ticket.

The victim’s family says they are cautiously optimistic that they will receive justice for their son.

“It was a tragic accident. It should have never happened, but people also need to be accountable for what happened and what they did. It’s never too late to do the right thing. I don’t want to see two families torn apart. Our family is destroyed. We’re never going to be the same. I don’t want to see that happen to their family.”

Howson now faces felony charges of interstate flight to avoid prosecution and failure to stop at a scene resulting in death. The FBI is working with the Thai government to extradite Howson to the US to face criminal charges.

Meanwhile, the Kable family started a GoFundMe account to help cover legal and funeral expenses.