Man killed, cousin injured by alleged drunk driver

One man is dead and another recovering after being hit by an alleged drunk driver over the weekend. It happened in a trailer park off NC 904 near Ramsey Ford Road in Columbus County.

Margarito Aguirre can barely move off his couch. He’s suffering face trauma, broken bones and the loss of his cousin, Miguel Toribio. Aguirre says he and Toribio were in the backyard Saturday afternoon when a ford pick-up hit them and their parked cars.

Highway Patrol says 31-year-old Thomas Paradise was behind the wheel with a blood alcohol content nearly three times the legal limit. Witnesses say Paradise ran over Toribio with his truck dragging Toribio’s body into a ditch. The truck finally stopped in a nearby field with three men inside. Neighbors say at first, no one claimed to be the driver, then they tried to hide in the woods, but police found them.

Paradise is charged with second-degree murder. He made his first appearance in court Monday.

Stores in the area are trying to raise money for the family to pay for Toribio’s funeral and Aguirre’s surgery. Aguirre says he hopes others learn a lesson from this. He says be very careful and don’t drink and drive.

A judge set Paradise’s bond today at $1 million.