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‘I want to have justice;’ Father speaks out after man indicted in crash that killed daughter

MORAINE — Tuesday a man was indicted in connection to a deadly hit-and-run crash that killed a woman in Moraine.

A father is glad justice is being done but said that night changed his family forever.

Jeffrey Ryan misses his daughter.

“These three wind chimes were all given to us by someone in memory of Emily. When they chime... I think that Emily’s talking to us,” Ryan said.

It’s been a little more than a month since Emily Ryan died.

“Friends would talk about, you know, they went to a party and didn’t know anybody and Emily was one that came and took their hand and took them around and introduced them to everyone, so they knew everybody by the end of the party and things like that. That was Emily,” Jeffrey said.

>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Woman identified as victim of deadly hit-and-run crash in Moraine; police investigating

Tuesday a grand jury indicted Nicholas Debello on charges of failure to stop after an accident and tampering with evidence.

Police said Debello was driving the truck that hit and killed Emily Ryan on I-75 in Moraine in April.

Emily’s car broke down on the highway. When she got out police said Debello hit her and kept going,

Investigators found him a week later in Kentucky.

“I’m trying not to be a bitter man towards this man. He took something from me that will never be replaced. That is a hard thing to deal with. But I’m trying not to be bitter. But on the same side, I want to have justice for my daughter,” Jeffrey said.

>> RELATED: Man accused in deadly Moraine hit-and-run indicted on charges

He said detectives told him Debello could face a vehicular homicide charge in the future.

In the meantime, he said sharing his daughter’s story is helping him grieve her.

“Romans 8:28 talks about all things working together for good. I’ve, I’ve had some very serious conversations with God. I told him I don’t agree with him on this. And that’s the truth. And I’m not there yet. But I want something good to come out of it,” he said.

“The only thing that we have left is her memory, her legacy. I want that legacy to mean something,” Jeffrey said.

News Center 7 has reached out to Moraine police it sees if Debello is facing any additional charges.

We will update this story if we hear back.

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