Holocaust survivor struck, killed in Valley Village hit-and-run

VALLEY VILLAGE, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A search is underway for a hit-and-run driver who struck and killed a 91-year-old Holocaust survivor in Valley Village.

The family of Gennady Bolotsky gathered Thursday at Magnolia Boulevard and Wilkinson Avenue, where the family patriarch was hit while walking in a crosswalk.

"We wish you had a human soul to stop or call and not leave him lying on the ground," said granddaughter Adriana Bolotsky.

Gennady Bolotsky was attempting to cross Magnolia Boulevard. He was walking his beloved dog Leelah, who was his companion after his wife of more than 50 years passed away.

"His dog was running around somehow untouched," Adriana Bolotsky added.

Neighbors say accidents happen at this intersection all the time. In fact, 15 years ago, Gennady Bolotsky was hit by a car in this very spot and survived. Unfortunately this time, it cost him his life.

"He was supposed to live to 100 or more. At 91, he had more energy than a person half his life," said the victim's son, Michael Bolotsky.

Los Angeles Police Department Valley Traffic Division detectives are now trying to track down a truck and are asking the public's help in finding it. It's a white Toyota Tundra-type truck with a camper shell.

"This parasite of the society shouldn't be in this society, shouldn't be on the streets," Michael Bolotsky said. "So please help us to put him where he belongs."

"Monday night after it happened, we went to the scene and not one car stopped. I could've been hit," Adriana Bolotsky said. "I saw cars zoom past me and I could have been hit, and I was standing, literally, over his blood."

The city of L.A. is offering up to a $50,000 reward for information leading to the suspect.