Driver freed on bond following charges he fatally struck Vernon man as he walked his dog last week
Vernon #Vernon
The Somers man accused of hitting and killing a Vernon man walking his dog last week was freed on bond ahead of a hearing Tuesday before a Superior Court judge on charges he fled the fatal crash that day.
Philip Holmes, 41, appeared briefly before Judge Hope C. Seely before his case was continued to next month. Since he posted the $100,000 bond before the appearance, little was said during the hearing. Holmes did not comment as he left the courthouse.
Holmes faces charges including evading an accident resulting in death, misconduct with a motor vehicle, possession of a controlled substance and use of drug paraphernalia.
His arrest Monday followed an exhaustive investigation by Vernon police into the death of Andrew Aggarwala at about 3 p.m. on Nov. 24.
In an effort meant to find witnesses, Vernon police first came face-to-face with Holmes as he drove through a checkpoint near the crash site the following day with apparent damage and dried blood on his Hyuandi Sonata, arrest records show.
Before setting up the checkpoint, officers had collected surveillance footage from neighboring homes showing what appeared to be a silver or gray sedan driving along Phoenix Street before the crash. Damaged pieces of the car left behind helped the investigators narrow the vehicle suspected to be involved in the crash to a 2011-2014 Hyuandi Sonata.
When officers spoke to Holmes that day, he said that his car was hit by a co-worker in his workplace parking lot. He later told officers that he did not hit anyone but hit a mailbox, an arrest warrant reads.
A detective told Holmes that he was involved in a crash, didn’t know what happened and left the scene, to which Holmes responded: “Yes, I did,” the warrant reads.
Holmes later said he “didn’t know any of this happened,” the warrant shows. When asked by the detective what exactly happened, Holmes asked for a lawyer.
He later called the detective and in the conversation said he believed he hit a mailbox and looked back but did not see anything, the warrant reads.
Holmes told investigators he was driving to his father’s Manchester home on Nov. 24 and may have glanced at his phone, the warrant reads. His phone showed a call about 2:51 p.m., near the time of the crash.
In the call with the detective, Holmes admitted to battling addiction, but later said he did not use drugs on Nov. 24.
When the detective told Holmes that he hit a man and if he looked back he would have seen the victim on the roadside with a homeowner who rushed to his aid, Holmes told the investigator, “Oh man, I’m not that kind of person I would have stopped had I have known,” according to the warrant.
The detective asked Holmes if he was feeling guilty and that’s why he drove back through the scene the following day, but Holmes said he was just going to visit his father, arrest records show.
Investigators spoke to Aggarwala’s wife, who said he had taken the week off from work and brought their dog, Ollie, on a longer walk than usual because they recently had been training the dog on an invisible fence in the yard.
She said she texted him and called him but he did not answer, so she went out looking for him and that is when she saw police cars near her home, the warrant reads.
In a recently published obituary, Aggarwala was remembered for his warm, easygoing personality, his commitment to family and his engineering accomplishments.
Aggarwala spent his career at Pratt & Whitney after graduating from Cornell University, making significant contributions to engine projects, the obituary reads. He held more than two dozen patents and mentored more than 100 engineers.
Much of Aggarwala’s life was dedicated to his two daughters, according to his obituary, leading to his involvement with the Vernon Soccer Club.
The club was to present Aggarwala with its volunteer of the year award later this year in recognition for his time as a coach, field director and board member.
A GoFundMe was set up to support his family and had raised more than $6,500 as of Tuesday afternoon.
Nicholas Rondinone can be reached at nrondinone@courant.com.
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