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Tragic: The future groom and his cousin die one day before the wedding when a wrong-way driver drives into them
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Tragic: The future groom and his cousin die one day before the wedding when a wrong-way driver drives into them

  • Kirk Walker and cousin Rob McLaurin died in a fatal accident in Harlem
  • The couple was killed on Saturday by a wrong-way driver who committed a hit-and-run
  • Walker died a few hours before the wedding with his fiancée

A bride is devastated after her groom-to-be and his cousin were tragically killed in a hit-and-run accident just hours before their wedding.

Kirk Walker and his cousin Rob McLaurin were killed by a wrong-way driver on the Henry Hudson Parkway in Harlem in the early hours of Saturday morning as they returned from his bachelor party.

Walker, a 38-year-old father of three from Manhattan, was scheduled to marry his devastated fiancée Shauntea Weaver, 40, at 5 p.m. Sunday at the Royal Manor wedding venue in Garfield, New Jersey.

But Walker and McLaurin, 40, were killed when their Dodge Challenger was struck head-on by a pickup truck speeding down the wrong side of the highway at 2:20 a.m.

Walker and McLaurin both died at the scene of the horrific collision that turned their car into a mangled mass of black and orange metal.

Tragic: The future groom and his cousin die one day before the wedding when a wrong-way driver drives into them

Kirk Walker (pictured right) was supposed to marry his partner Shauntea Weaver (top left) on Saturday

Walker was killed along with Rob McLaurin (pictured) on the way back from his bachelor party.

Walker was killed along with Rob McLaurin (pictured) on the way back from his bachelor party.

The couple tragically died at the scene of the accident in Harlem (picture)

The couple tragically died at the scene of the accident in Harlem (picture)

The driver reportedly fled the scene of the accident and had not been caught as of Monday. A passenger in the pickup truck was taken to a local hospital for treatment. It is currently unknown if the passenger has been arrested or charged in connection with the accident.

A distraught Weaver told the New York Post: “He died 24 hours before our wedding. This is devastating, and not just for me. He has three children who loved him immensely. They are deeply saddened that their father has been taken from them.”

“He was such a generous, hard-working man. He had a heart of gold and would do anything for anyone. Such a hard worker.”

The couple worked in a successful car rental business they founded together, which Weaver said was entirely due to the dedication of her late fiancé.

“He put his heart and soul into it – we both did.”

She says all she wants now is justice for Walker.

The couple worked in a successful car rental business they founded together, which Weaver said was entirely due to the dedication of her late fiancé.

The couple worked in a successful car rental business they founded together, which Weaver said was entirely due to the dedication of her late fiancé.

The driver reportedly fled the accident and had not been caught as of Monday.

The driver reportedly fled the accident and had not been caught as of Monday.

Father Kirk Walker Sr. said of the accident that killed his son and nephew:

Father Kirk Walker Sr. said of the accident that killed his son and nephew: “It hurts me so much and I’m really angry. I’m angry.”

At a vigil for the two men, Walker's mother (pictured) wore a T-shirt that read

At a vigil for the two men, Walker’s mother (pictured) wore a T-shirt that read “Mother of the Groom,” which she said she would have worn at her son’s wedding.

“Nothing will bring him back. But we want justice.” The detectives looked me straight in the face and said they would do anything to get justice.

“They told me the driver left his DNA on the airbags. So they did. Also, the passenger is in hospital with broken legs and needs to speak out.

“Two people died in a reckless car crash,” she continued. “They must pay for killing two innocent people.”

At a vigil for the two men, Walker’s mother wore a T-shirt that read “Mother of the Groom,” which she said she would have worn at her son’s wedding.

“This is what we were supposed to wear today… But they took my baby away from me. He wanted this wedding so much. And my nephew, they took my nephew away from me too,” Susan Walker said.

Father Kirk Walker Sr. said: “My heart hurts so much and I’m really angry. I’m angry.”

He said he had a message for the fleeing driver: “I want them to see my face. I just want them to know it’s not over. It’s not over.”

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