HARTLAND TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WXYZ) — A 22-year-old Hartland Township man was hit and killed as he was riding his bike home from work just days before Christmas.
The Tubbs family adopted Alexander "Sasha" Tubbs in 2020 from Ukraine and says they will continue to honor his memory and fight for justice.
Sasha's mom, Lisa Tubbs, says he was finishing his shift at Arby's around midnight on Dec. 23, when he went across the street to hangout with his friends at a gas station. After a little over an hour, he decided to ride his bike back home — a trip that only take minutes down Old US-23 Highway — when he was hit by a pickup truck near Bergin Road.
The driver then fled.
"He really was just an exceptional human and for him to die alone like roadkill on a litter-lined highway is just absolutely not what he deserved," Lisa Tubbs said.
She also has an 8-year-old biological son named Teddy, who she says shared a strong bond with Sasha. Their Christmas holiday was full of tears this year instead of laughter.
Lisa Tubbs says she and her husband met Sasha in 2018, and while they say they had no plans of adopting internationally at the time, they felt such a strong connection with the teenager that they felt that they had to.
"It was like this missing piece of the puzzle that we didn’t even know wasn’t there," she said.
Lisa Tubbs says Sasha wanted to be a chef and was an honest soul. He preferred to ride his bike instead of driving because he said he could never forgive himself if he hurt someone.
Now the family says they are full of rage and anger because the driver is still out there. They say they will continue fighting for justice for their son, and to be the happy, goofy family that Sasha always wanted to be a part of.
"We are the family that he desperately wanted to be a part of and so we want to preserve that and we want to stay wonderful for him, but also how can anything be wonderful right now," Lisa Tubbs asked.
Michigan State Police say they found debris at the scene of the crash. They also found a truck they believe to be involved. A 64-year-old man from Brighton has been identified as a suspect, but no one is in custody as of Feb. 14.
