Aurora driver sentenced to five years in prison for hit-and-run that killed man, dog

A judge in Arapahoe County s th Judicial District court sentenced an Aurora driver to five years in prison followed by five years of mandatory parole for the fatal killing of a -year-old man and his dog On the night of April Michael Graham-Hyde killed Rafael Alberto Buitrago and his dog Nova while they were on a walk near East Wesley Drive and East Caspian Circle Graham-Hyde notified police he had been awake for hours after returning from an overseas trip when he fell asleep at the wheel and hit Buitrago and Nova according to an arrest affidavit He got out of his SUV saw Buitrago and panicked choosing to drive away when he saw another car coming because he thought the other driver would stop and help police wrote in the affidavit Graham-Hyde stood before Arapahoe County District Court Judge LaQunya Baker at Monday afternoon s sentencing hearing and expressed deep remorse for crashing into Buitrago and fleeing the scene a decision he mentioned fills him with shame that he will carry for the rest of his life Related Articles Pueblo woman sentenced to life in prison for murder of two children Nigerian man sentenced to years in prison in crypto romance scheme with Colorado widow Denver day trader sentenced to years for M fraud Pattern of deception Brazilian Supreme Court panel sentences Bolsonaro to more than years in prison for coup attempt His family must be feeling pain and suffering and have questions that may never be answered and I regret what I have done to their family he announced Buitrago was pronounced dead at the hospital and Nova was killed instantly police disclosed Luz Buitrago Rafael s wife declared that Graham-Hyde ended years of marriage and that what happened to her husband not only destroyed her life but also the lives of plenty of others This is a advancing story and may be updated Sign up to get crime news sent straight to your inbox each day