ROLESVILLE, NC - On Friday, police arrested Romual Ramirez-Silva, 27, following a hit-and-run, which took the life of Rolesville High School student, 17-year-old Ashlee Marie Llagostera.
Llagostera was walking along Louisberg Road, when Ramirez-Silva, driving a 2016 Dodge Ram pickup veered off onto the shoulder, striking Llagostera, according to police.
He immediately fled the scene, leaving the teenager to die on the side of the road.
Shortly after the deadly hit-and-run, Ramirez-Silva hit a vehicle, at which time he was taken into custody.
The 11th grader had many friends, who have been placing flowers along the roadside, where she was killed.
WTVD reported:
"She was a big Star Wars fan so any time she would talk about leaving she's like, 'The force will always be there. So I'm always there,'" remembered Shayna Holden, one of Llagostera's friends.
"She always had a smile on her face and never failed to make anyone else smile," said Emma Burton.
"It's kind of hard because I lost this big part of me and it feels like I can't do anything about it," said her friend Catherine Jones. "She has impacted all of us in the best way possible."
Ramirez-Silva aggravated felony death by vehicle, felony hit and run, reckless driving and driving while license revoked for driving while impaired. He was booked into the Wake County Jail on $1,000,000 bond.
However, rather than being held inside a jail cell, he is currently on house arrest, with an electronic monitor on his ankle.
In 2019, Ramirez-Silva was convicted of driving while impaired.
