Fort Worth man, his girlfriend and her 3 kids killed by alleged drunk driver, family says
FORT WORTH, Texas - Family members reveal a mother, her three young children and her boyfriend were the ones killed by an alleged drunk driver on I-35W in Fort Worth this week.
Willie Gunn and Amber Hopewell were identified as two of the victims.
Willie Gunn (Family Photo)
Hopewell's children — ages 2, 4 and 9 — are believed to have been with them.
Fort Worth police say a drunk 19-year-old in a Camaro crashed into the car they were in, causing it to burst into flames.
Frinchesta Gunn is now forced to rely on memories. She wasn’t able to stop by Sunday to see her Uncle Willie at a family gathering.
"That just hurt me. Because everybody else seen him, you know what I am saying?. Be with you. But I didn’t," she said.
Just before 1 a.m. Monday, family members tell FOX 4 Willie, his girlfriend and her three children were all killed by an alleged drunk driver.
Fort Worth police say 19-year-old Eduardo Gonzalez was driving drunk at an extremely high rate of speed on I-35W.
Eduardo Gonzalez (Source: Fort Worth Police)
Gonzalez’s black Camaro slammed into the back of the sedan on the Seminary exit, causing it to catch on fire.
First responders say everyone inside the burning vehicle died on scene, and it was difficult to determine the ages and identities of the victims.
The Gunn family can’t help but picture their final moments.
"My stomach just keeps doing flips. Sometimes I am alright, and then I just get sick. It is making me sick," said Bobbie Tisby, Willie’s sister. "He took my brother’s life away because he just wanted to be drunk."
Fort Worth police found alcoholic beverages inside the Camaro. Plus, investigators say the 19-year-old smelled like alcohol and had slurred speech. Results of a blood test are still pending.
Gonzalez was treated at a hospital and then booked into the Tarrant County jail, facing five counts of intoxication manslaughter.
Alecia Gunn is Willie’s ex-wife. They were together for 15 years. She says Willie helped raise her children, and he leaves behind two kids of his own.
Willie Gunn and ex-wife Alecia Gunn
"The drunk driving has to stop," she said. "It’s a terrible way… for his new girlfriend and her kids. It’s terrible to lose somebody like that. It’s been a rough couple of days.
FOX 4 reached out to Amber Hopewell’s family as well, but they were understandably not ready to speak publicly at this time.