Man angered by plea deal in deaths caused by DUI

A Las Vegas grandfather whose wife and 5-year-old grandson were killed after a drunk driver raced through a school zone and a red light and slammed into their car is fuming at the plea bargain given to the defendant.

In the deal Guillermo Fellove, who has a long history of traffic offenses, pleaded guilty recently to two felony drunken driving counts with the agreement that the sentence can't exceed 12 to 30 years.

For Richard Aarenau said the sentence isn't enough for two lives.

Aarenau, his voice cracking with emotion, told the Sun that every morning when he wakes he expects his wife, Hilda, 63, to be next to him, but she never will be.

He remembers that at 6:30 a.m., his grandson, Aviezer Aarenau, would jump on the bed and announce that it was time for him to start getting ready for day school.

"Every day it destroys me," Richard Aarenau said, noting that the boy was going to graduate from the day school two weeks after the May 13 incident on Maryland Parkway in front of Bishop Gorman High School.

"He never had a chance to live," Aarenau said, as he fought back tears. "I had to identify the body. His neck was broken. His spine was broken. He was all twisted up. It was terrible, terrible."

The boy lived for an hour, but Hilda Aarenau died at the scene, pinned in the vehicle that was crushed from the high speed impact. Both had been wearing seat belts.

Richard Aarenau conceded, however, that the impact of the incident may be hardest on his daughter, Jennifer Aarenau.

Three years ago, when the family lived in Syracuse, N.Y., her husband was killed by a drunken driver who was said to be politically connected and given only a few months in jail as punishment. She has refused to drive since then.

The family moved to Las Vegas, only to be hit with even a greater tragedy.

Richard Aarenau said his daughter has been unable to hold down a job or sleep without medication because of the accident that occurred as Metro Police officers watched.

Aarenau said the plea bargain is too light for the driver, even though Fellove would have to serve 12 years before being eligible for parole, if he is given the maximum sentence under the deal.

He said he wants Fellove to serve at least 30 years behind bars.

Fellove admitted being under the influence of cocaine at the time of the accident, and Aarenau said police reports indicate the man showed no remorse at the scene for the deaths he caused.

The decision about Fellove's fate will be up to District Judge Joseph Bonaventure when the 53-year-old defendant is sentenced Sept. 17. The sentence could be as low as two to five years, but probation is not an option under Nevada law.

As part of the deal, charges of involuntary manslaughter, reckless driving and being under the influence of cocaine are going to be dismissed.

"I'm heartbroken," Richard Aarenau said. "We can't bring them back, but we're entitled to a little justice."

Metro Police said they were tailing Fellove's car when it sped through a school zone and disregarded a red light at Oakey Boulevard where it plowed into a car driven by Hilda Aarenau.

archive