SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Family members of a 27-year-old National City bride-to-be are demanding justice after she was killed by a hit-and-run driver while sitting at a bus stop.
According to police, Katie Osorio was waiting for a bus along National Avenue, near 35th Street, on Friday afternoon when an Infiniti sedan drove onto the sidewalk, struck the bus stop and Osorio, then drove off. She was rushed to a hospital, where she died.
Investigators located the driver nearby and arrested her. Assmaa Elayyat, 41, was booked on vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run charges.
Osorio, a clerk at a nearby store, had been traveling between jobs when she was struck.
Her cousin, Evelin Osorio, said bystanders found Katie's cell phone at the scene and called the family.
"There were people at the scene notifying us, the person kind of reversed and tried leaving, and did go over her body again," Evelin said.
Family members described Katie as kind, funny, and soft-spoken — and excited about her future. She had graduated with a business degree from a college in Mexico. Recently, she was about to enroll in a nursing program and was planning her wedding.
"A big wedding in Mexico City in December and doing a courthouse in July," Evelin said.
Her fiancé, who lives in Tijuana, used to meet her at the border every afternoon. Evelin said he has returned to that same spot every day since Katie died.
"He's absolutely destroyed and totally devastated. And he's still waiting in the line at the same spot, where he would always pick up her. He’s still waiting for her there," a tearful Evelin said.
Katie's uncle, Rodrigo, expressed the family's grief. “We are sad and inconsolable. This person took such a beautiful life away,” said Rodrigo.
Four days after the crash, Evelin said the family wants the public to know who Katie was — and wants accountability.
"Just the act of not stopping is a vicious and cruel crime. We want justice for Katie. We want everyone to know her, and we want that person to pay," Evelin said.
A gathering of candles and flowers has formed outside a shopping center in Southcrest, near the remnants of the bus stop where Katie was struck.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the family with memorial expenses.
A viewing, open to the public, is scheduled for Saturday at Funerary del Angel in National City between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Elayyat posted bond and is scheduled to be arraigned on June 1.
