Police announce $26K reward for information on West Hartford hit-and-run crash that killed 89-year-old woman 

West Hartford police on Thursday announced a $26,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the driver in a hit-and-run crash that killed an 89-year-old pedestrian in West Hartford in December.

Eugenia Yurovsky was walking in the area of Boulevard and Whiting Lane on the evening of Dec. 20, 2022, when she was hit by an SUV, according to the West Hartford Police Department.

Gov. Ned Lamont approved a $25,000 public reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the unknown driver involved in her death, police said during a press conference on Thursday afternoon. The Rotary Club of West Hartford previously announced a $1,000 reward in April.

Investigators have not been able to identify any family for Yurovsky, whose husband died 10 years ago, West Hartford Chief Vernon Riddick Jr. said at the press conference.

Police in West Hartford looking for driver in fatal hit-and-run

“At the end of the day, somebody lost their life. She’s not just a person on a poster, she’s a real live individual who was walking this earth breathing and just getting some fresh air at 5 o’clock,” Riddick said.

Yurovsky was struck by a light-colored vehicle that police say might have been similar to a 2010-15 GMC style. Investigators believe the vehicle had damage to the right driver’s side near the grille and bumper, police said.

Riddick said that investigators have canvassed neighborhoods in West Hartford looking for witnesses and information, have visited body shops to inquire about vehicles with damage matching the damage likely sustained in the crash and have created a 3D reconstruction of the crash.

Riddick asked anyone who knows the driver to please come forward with information.

“If you know something please give us a call,” he said. “If you have a conscience each and every day you’ll be thinking about this wondering if you should come forward about it. Well, the answer is yes.”

The chief also shared a message for the driver.

“As you were driving maybe you saw her, maybe you didn’t. It was an accident, maybe you panicked. We don’t have answers to those questions. But at the end of the day, someone died and you left them there,” he said.

“Every day when you go to work you’re probably wondering ‘Is today the day that the police will find me?’” said Riddick. “You’re in your house and maybe a cruiser drives by, you hear a knock at the door and wonder if today is the day. At a restaurant with friends, you’re wondering. You have that burden on you. When is it going to happen? Is it going to happen? Did you get away with it?”

The chief encouraged the driver to put an end to those questions and come forward.

“Alleviate that burden, take away that pressure, come speak to us and give us your side of the story,” he said.

Anyone with information about the crash is asked to contact the police department’s anonymous tip line at 860-570-8969 or whpdtips@westhartfordct.gov.