NEW HAVEN, Conn. — More than a year after a University of New Haven student was killed in a hit-and-run, the woman who police said is responsible appeared in a New Haven courtroom.
It’s a moment the family of 24-year-old Priyanshu Agwal said they’ve been waiting for, but it certainly wasn’t easy for them.
“To be honest, I didn’t want to see her. I saw her and I felt like, just because of this person, we suffered a lot,” said Aman Agwal, Priyanshu’s brother.
Forty-one-year-old Jill Augelli, of Naugatuck, was arrested in November 2024 after an extensive police investigation. She’s being held on a $250,000 bond, after being charged with Evading Responsibility Resulting in Death.
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In October of 2023, police said Augelli hit and killed Agwal as he was riding an electric scooter on a New Haven street, and then they said she left the scene. Agwal, originally from India, was just months away from graduating from UNH.
“It’s a void. Nobody can fill it. Especially for my parents, and myself and my sister. We miss him very dearly,” Aman said.
Aman and his two uncles were in the courtroom Tuesday. They said for a while, they were losing their faith in the justice system. But this reignites that faith.
“Starting like six to eight months, we were very hopeless. And we were like wondering like, are we not going to get justice because maybe like, we are outsiders,” Aman said.
Police said they identified the suspect’s car shortly after the crash but couldn’t charge her until the evidence spoke for itself, since she wouldn’t speak to them.
“You have to put someone behind the driver’s seat, you know,” said New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson said.
Eventually, they did just that after an extensive investigation, detailed in the arrest warrant. It describes a complicated case where, through surveillance video, witness accounts, DNA evidence found on Augelli’s car, and cellphone data…detectives were able to place her at the scene at the exact time of the crash.
“That’s what I think got a positive result in the end, and we thank our FBI partners for helping us with that,” Jacobson said.
It’s a small sense of justice for Priyanshu’s family, as they try to move forward, in his honor.
“He was a charming person. Always laughter, always making the jokes to us,” said Hasu Patel, Priyanshu’s uncle.
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“Many thoughts come and go. And sometimes good memories, sometimes bad memories,” Aman said. “I can’t define how much we miss him, but, we love him and we miss him.”
The warrant does reveal that it seems Priyanshu ran through a red light on his scooter and was then hit by Augelli. However, because she left the scene she’s been charged as such.
Augelli is expected back in court on Jan. 21, 2025.
With much of the Agwal family living in India, and some here in Connecticut, they all say they’re going to try to work together to make sure someone is at each of these court appearances. It’s a process that they’ve been warned may take a long time.
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Julia LeBlanc is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jleblanc@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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