Tow Operator Struck and Killed by Hit-and-Run Driver in Las Vegas

A tow operator was struck and killed Tuesday, March 9, by a hit-and-run driver while working on the roadside in Las Vegas, Nev.

Ryan Matthew Billotte, 48, an operator for Quality Towing, was hit on the 215 Southern Beltway near Decatur. The Nevada Highway Patrol received a call regarding the incident at 7:47 p.m.

Trooper Travis Smaka said a white box van drifted onto the shoulder of the freeway and hit the operator and the tow truck. The van driver fled the scene without stopping.

The operator was taken to a trauma center and pronounced dead.

UPDATE: The Nevada Highway Patrol has confirmed that a person has been arrested in connection with the incident.

Dozens of tow operators from the Las Vegas Valley area gathered outside the medical center late Tuesday, staging their trucks with lights activated to honor Billotte,