BERKELEY, CA — The brother of a San Lorenzo man who was deliberately run over by a suspect outside the family's business in Berkeley says he hopes the 18th anniversary of the crime will generate new leads in the unsolved case.

Richard DeVecchi, 37, was struck by a car at about 7:15 a.m. on Dec. 17, 1998, in front of Berkeley Warehouse, Inc., a trucking and warehousing company located at 1920 Second St., about a block north of University Avenue. His brother, Randy DeVecchi, said, "Someone, somewhere, knows something about this crime and we need them to come forward and give us some peace."

DeVecchi said the day his brother Richard was killed he went outside on Second Street after a fellow employee told him that there was a prowler near the bed of his pickup truck. Also See: Grand Menorah Lighting After he left the business, Richard was struck by an early 1980s white or tan Cadillac with a dark vinyl roof. The car then sped west on Hearst Avenue and then north to Interstate Highway 80. The license plate contained the letters "CUS," with blue characters on a white plate, according to Berkeley police.

Randy DeVecchi said four witnesses who saw his brother get hit said the suspect had been driving slowly but then accelerated, hit Richard DeVecchi and kept going. Also See: Woman Arrested For Running Down, Killing Boyfriend: Police DeVecchi said his brother was kept alive on a ventilator for several days but was declared brain dead on Dec. 21, 1998. The next day, his organs and tissues were donated.



Richard DeVecchi is survived by his wife of 15 years and two children.

Randy DeVecchi said it's "baffling" that the driver and the car haven't been seen since the incident.