Correction: The gathering of friends will be at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, June 4th, instead of at 4:00 p.m., as Elon News Network previously reported. Elon News Network regrets the error.
Anton Downey, an Aramark employee who worked for Elon Dining Services, was killed early Saturday morning as the result of a drunken driving incident, according to the Burlington Police Department.
Downey, 46, worked at Elon for 18 years and was also a bouncer at Fat Frogg Bar and Grill.
According to police, Downey was driving a moped when he was hit by a pickup truck driven by Elon resident Tyler LaPlaca.
Tyler LaPlaca, 21, was arrested for DWI and charged with felony death by motor vehicle and felony hit and run. Mug shot courtesy Burlington Police Department.
Officers responded to the crash at 2:09 a.m. Saturday morning in front of the Autobell Car Wash on South Church Street in Burlington. Officers found Downey dead when they arrived at the scene.
According to police, LaPlaca fled in his pickup truck and was later stopped by a North Carolina Highway Patrol officer for speeding and driving without headlights. The state trooper reported LaPlaca’s blood alcohol content to be 0.14 — nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08 — and arrested him on charges of driving while intoxicated.
After an investigation, police matched LaPlaca’s truck to the one from the scene using a description from witnesses at the crash scene. Evidence at the scene also matched damage on his truck, police said.
Police charged LaPlaca with felony death by motor vehicle and felony hit and run, both in addition to the DWI.
Elon University spokesman Dan Anderson told Elon News Network LaPlaca was previously enrolled at the university from fall of 2014 to spring of 2016.
A Go Fund Me page was set up by Elon students to support Downey's family. A gathering of friends will take place at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, June 4th in the Numen Lumen Pavilion Sacred Space.