Advertisement Car, evidence seized in fatal hit-and-run investigation in Methuen

A 57-year-old Methuen man was struck and killed by a car right outside his home Monday, according to police.Timothy Lafferty was struck at 8:40 p.m. at 253 Jackson St. Lafferty was in the road waiting for a vehicle to be delivered by a tow truck when the driver of a car hit him and took off. "What I’m being told is that a tow truck was delivering a vehicle to that house and the gentleman was outside standing next to the tow truck while they were dropping the vehicle and, unfortunately, he was struck," Methuen Police Chief Joseph Solomon said.Lafferty died at the scene, police said. A woman who said she was the victim's roommate said he was always helping others."He’s a great guy -- always helped everybody," she said. "He’s just an awesome person. He was helping my daughter get her car towed. He was pulling his car across the street so the tow guy could come up, and someone hit him." The tow truck driver told police he did not see the deadly crash because he was dealing with the car on the back of the truck."(The tow truck driver) said he was in a rush, he got back inside his vehicle to release and do the unload, he heard a thud, he observed the victim travel through the air and then immediately called for some assistance," Solomon said. Overnight, investigators focused on a home on Brook Street less than a mile from the crash site. A car with damage to the driver’s side front-end and windshield was towed from the property. "During the night the investigation led us to recover a vehicle which was further down the street in the opposite direction," Solomon said. "Currently, that vehicle has been impounded by us and is being processed by the Massachusetts State Police Accident Reconstruction Unit and Crime Scene Services." Police were also seen taking evidence from the home.Police asked residents who live on Jackson Street from Ranger Road to Pleasant Valley Street to check their security cameras. Those residents should check for a vehicle traveling toward Pleasant Valley Street at 8:40 p.m."From approximately 8:40 last night until about 8:50 or 9 o'clock, if you see any vehicles traveling by -- particularly without their lights out or that you can notice have damage -- please call the Methuen Police Department," Solomon said.Anyone with further information about the crash is being asked to contact the Methuen Police Department at 978-983-8698. "If you hit someone, stop, call 911. Maybe you’re a few extra seconds there calling 911 or rendering aide," Solomon said.