Vehicular homicide charge in crash that killed principal Sean Hughes

Jim Walsh, Cherry Hill Courier-Post
·1 min read

WINSLOW - A Pine Hill man allegedly ran a stop sign before a crash that killed a high school principal from Pennsylvania, authorities say.

Azuka Ossai, 54, also was speeding when the accident occurred at Fleming Pike and Hays Road in November 2021, said the Camden County Prosecutor's Office.

The crash killed Sean Hughes, 51, of Harleysville, who was taking his 13-year-old son to a youth soccer game. The boy survived the 7:30 a.m. accident with injuries.

Sean Hughes
Sean Hughes

Hughes was the longtime principal at Lower Merion High School in suburban Philadelphia. The Lower Merion district closed its schools for a day in response to his death, allowing clinical staff to help students and employees.

"Mr. Hughes was beloved by thousands of students who passed through the halls of Lower Merion over the years,” Khalid Mumin, the district's superintendent, said after the accident. “They greeted him in the halls by calling out his signature nickname, 'Huuuuuuughes.'"

Hughes, an avid runner, also participated for more than 20 years in Philadelphia's Broad Street Run, the high school's website notes. A school fundraiser is offering Team Hughes T-shirts in advance of this year's May 2 run "as a way of remembering Principal Hughes' positive spirit."

Hughes, the father of three, also was president of the Central Athletic League, an association of a dozen high schools outside Philadelphia.

"He was part of the Sea Isle City Beach Patrol for many years," the educator's obituary noted.

Ossai was arrested Thursday on a charge of vehicular homicide by operating a vehicle recklessly. He also is accused of assault by auto.

The charges are only allegations. Ossai has not been convicted in the case.

Jim Walsh covers public safety, economic development and other beats for the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal.

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This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Winslow crash kills principal Sean Hughes of Lower Merion High School