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A few hundred people gathered in Concord Sunday night to mourn the father and daughter killed on a bike ride by an out-of-control driver.
Flowers and candles were multiplying and posters were left behind with tributes written to the 41-year-old Concord man and his 9-year-old daughter who were struck and killed as they rode their bicycles on a sidewalk along Concord's busy Treat Boulevard Saturday.
Cellphone records were being checked, as investigators try to determine whether talking on a phone may have contributed to the crash, police said Sunday.
Witnesses told police that the Cadillac Escalade that jumped a curb and ran down Solaiman Nuri and his daughter, Hadessa on Saturday morning was speeding, but Concord police Lt. Bill Roche said that investigators will also review the cellphone records of the 17-year-old driver who was behind the wheel of the SUV.
Solaiman Nuri was pronounced dead at the scene. His daughter was transported to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
A second daughter, a 12-year-old Hennah, was also hit by the SUV and was hospitalized with minor injuries.
The teenage driver of the SUV sustained minor injuries and was transported to a local hospital for treatment, police said.
Law enforcement officials later arrested him and he was booked into juvenile hall on two counts of manslaughter.
Friends of the teenage driver told KTVU he was on his way to a friend's house when he lost control of the SUV. They also said he would often drive fast and sometimes would talk on his cell phone.
Police said speed was a factor in the crash.
Toxicology tests were being run on the teenage driver before investigators could rule out alcohol and drugs as a factor in the crash.
Solaiman Nuri and his family moved to Concord from Afghanistan more than a decade ago, friends said. He coached his younger daughter's under-13 girls soccer team, Aria Sports Club, a nonprofit group serving the Afghan community across the Bay Area.
Soliaman, who went by Sam, worked as a truck driver at the Port of Oakland.
Loved ones described Hadessa as an adorable, polite, quiet third-grader who loved soccer and her older sister.
Storai Nuri was surrounded by family as she came for the first time to see where her husband and daughter died.
The two left Sunday's vigil early, overcome with emotion.
Najib Niazi, a relative of the victims, said he's leaning on his faith to cope with the tragedy of losing two family members.
"God will test us in many different ways, bringing us sadness, happiness; but it's always his way of teaching us what's life about," Niazi said. "Solaiman was one of the best (people) I've ever known. He's been a wonderful father, husband, friend."
The family said they'll pray for the father and daughter for the next 40 days, asking for a peaceful journey to heaven.
Storai Nuri is a trauma nurse at John Muir Hospital and has said how much it pains her that she helps save lives for a living, but couldn't save her family.
Anyone with information on this crime is asked to call traffic officer Ken Carlson at 925-603-5931.
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