OAKLAND COUNTY, MICHIGAN: A woman who fatally struck an MSU student and fled the country was sentenced to between one and five years behind bars months. Tubtim 'Sue' Howson, who fled to Thailand which is her birth country, previously pleaded no contest to a charge of failure to stop at the scene of a serious personal injury accident on June 14 in an Oakland County court.
The 57-year-old woman hit Benjamin Kable on New Year's Day and left him to die. She then evaded capture by fleeing the country. The crash fugitive who has received 132 days credit for prison time served will serve the rest of the jail term in a Michigan prison, according to Law and Crime.
Who is Tubtim Howson?
Howson, who is originally from Thailand, flew to Bangkok from Detroit two days after Kable's death. The 22-year-old man who is a senior at Michigan State University was out walking on Rochester Road in Oakland Township on January 1 at approximately 5.49 am. "Witnesses stated the vehicle continued south, turned around to go north, and remained in the area for a short period of time after the crash. The driver of the vehicle then fled the scene after the incident. [The victim] suffered fatal injuries as a result of the crash and died at the scene," read the documents.
As of Thursday, July 27, Kable's family has raised $12,702 through their GoFundMe campaign which has a goal of $25,000 to support the family. Speaking to Detroit ABC affiliate WYZ at the time of Kable's death, his father Ben emotionally said, "An accident can happen, but what came afterward makes it even worse."
Howson apologized to Kable's family
Authorities stated that the fugitive "who lived not far from the crash," fled the spot. Howson allegedly admitted to another person that she had killed someone and that she plans to return to Thailand. She then refused to surrender to the cops when she was requested to as she allegedly stated, "No cops." Howson who has dual citizenship in the US and Thailand was brought back to the country after Thai authorities worked with US officials.
On March 15, Howson was returned to Michigan and to avoid prosecution, a charge of the interstate flight was dropped by the federal prosecutors. On Wednesday, Howson apologized to Kable's family. Through an interpreter, she said, "I want to apologize to the family of the victim and the victim himself."
