Grieving parents have issued a heartbreaking appeal to the Latvian man wanted for suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving after a hit-and-run killed their son.
Twelve-year-old Keaton Slater died on June 14 after being hit by a black BMW as he walked home from school. But more than three months later there has been no justice.
Dolars Aleksanders, 21, is wanted for suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving. It is thought that Aleksanders has gone back to his native Latvia, leading Keaton’s mum and dad Louise and Clint to campaign for his extradition.
Mrs Slater said: “The police have said they know where he is but we’re not allowed to tell you because of conflict.
“I sat here with my husband one night and I said ‘This isn’t right. My baby has died. We haven’t got a future with him, and we’ve got to take this further.’”
She added: “Dolars mum and dad live up the road from us. We found out their address so I walked up there just to see if they can live with their daily chores and live their lives when we can’t anymore.”
Addressing Dolars, she said: “Just put yourself forward. Just hold yourself accountable for the horrendous thing you’ve done and that’s it – just serve justice, that’s all I want.”
She says that the family has been losing hope that they will ever see justice but keep fighting because that’s what 12-year-old Keaton would have done.
Mrs Slater added: “When Keaton passed – I keep thinking what would he do when he’s 13 next year, then 14.
“I see people cuddling their children at the train station and they have that future. It’s just heartbreaking knowing that someone’s taken that away from us. And knowing there’s no justice yet. It’s just heartbreaking.”
She added: “The road he was on, it’s a primary school, a nursery, a secondary school road. The MP said that every time they put in for a 20mph road all the neighbours, the residents say no.
“I’m trying to do everything I can to get justice for Keaton because I know that if he’d survived this and if he was sat on the sofa he would be saying to me: ‘Mum, you need to get whoever done this to justice’.
“If his friend had passed away he’d be doing the same.”
The Slater family has set up a petition calling for the extradition of Aleksanders and it has been signed by more than 65,000 people. They are also doing their best to support each other as a family.
Mrs Slater said: “Since Keaton died it’s been like Groundhog Day. We’ve got to try and get on with our lives.
“I’ve still got two children that I need to focus on and it’s just heartbreaking.
“They’ve been so brave and so strong. They’ve stepped in and helped us and they’ve given us cuddles. They’ve been amazing.
“It’s brought the family closer because we now know that life’s too short, so it’s definitely brought us closer together as a family.
“To think they’ve lost their little brother – their best mate.”
As the days go on Mrs Slater says “Every day feels like it’s getting worse instead of getting better” and they are losing hope that Aleksanders will be caught.
But their MP, Taiwo Owatemi, has given them a glimmer of hope.
Mrs Slater said: “The MP said ‘This is so easy to do, we can do this’ and so it’s like a light at the end of the tunnel because before the police were like ‘We can’t tell you anything, we can’t tell you this’ and the MP was like ‘Of course we can, we can do this, we can do that.
And I was like ‘We can get justice for Keaton’ and it’s also about proving to people that they can’t do a crime and get away with it. That’s what I want to get across.”
Speaking on BBC Breakfast, the MP for Coventry North West said: “Keaton’s family deserve justice for what has happened and it’s absolutely devastating that he (Aleksanders) felt he could run away to Latvia.
“That’s the reason why I have raised the situation with the Home Secretary and the relevant minister and work is being done to get that justice and to bring him (Aleksanders) back to the UK.
“Sadly, the difficulty is that extraditions weren’t negotiated as part of the EU Brexit deal, so each country, you have to go back and negotiate with them to ensure criminals are brought back to the UK to face justice and that is what the police are doing.”
A West Midlands Police spokesperson said: “We’re actively pursuing strong lines of enquiry in relation to the whereabouts of Dolars Aleksanders.
“Our focus remains on getting justice for Keaton and his family as soon as we possibly can.
“We’re continuing to progress the investigation by collecting as much evidence as possible, so we build a clear picture around the tragic events on 14 June.”
