‘Just come forward’: Nearly 5 years after deadly hit-and-run near Poulsbo, victim’s partner still pleads for answers
Jun 18, 2026, 5:00 AM | Updated: 3:02 pm
Nearly five years after 36-year-old Vince Giamona was killed in a late-night hit-and-run near Poulsbo, his partner is still living with unanswered questions.
A warm August night that changed everything
On the night of August 9, 2021, Giamona went out for a walk near his home on Clear Creek Road in Kitsap County, a busy cut-through where drivers often speed.
“It was the evening. It was August 9,” his partner, Andrew Padula, said. “On his walk, we don’t know exactly what happened … but a vehicle hit him, I believe it was around 10:30 or so, and just continued on.”
Investigators said Giamona may have been low to the ground or picking something up when he was struck. The driver never stopped.
‘Oh my God, my partner was out here walking’
Padula was at home when he noticed flashing emergency lights outside.
“I went out to go look, and saw a deputy had blocked off the road, and I was like, ‘What’s going on?’ And they’re like, ‘Oh, a pedestrian was hit.’ And I said, ‘Oh my God, my partner was out here walking, is he OK? Is it him? Can I go check on him?’ and they held me back,” Padula recalled.
Coming from a news background himself, Padula knew the situation was dire when he heard responders ask for a chaplain.
A dream home turned into a place of loss
The couple had moved from Seattle to the Poulsbo area, looking for more space and quiet — what they believed would be their dream home.
“He was just a great guy. He could light up a room,” Padula said. “He’d go into any place and come out meeting new friends. Everybody loved him. He was sort of like the life of the party.”
Giamona had done much of the decorating in the home. After his death, Padula kept things the way Giamona left them as a way to cope with the loss.
“It’s not something that you get used to. I think you just kind of learn to live with it and live with the void. It was very, very difficult. Just waking up not next to him and having to be around in the house that was supposed to be the two of us,” he said.
A case that’s still cold — the hit-and-run driver still free
Despite the passage of time, the case remains unsolved. The person behind the wheel that night has never been identified.
“We want them to do the right thing. Just come forward. This could have been just an accident,” Padula said. “We’ve been living with this for the last five years, and this person has been out and about, just living freely like nothing’s happened.”
Investigators believe the suspect vehicle is a dark-colored 2007 to 2012 Nissan Sentra.
Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound is offering a $15,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest and charges in the case. Crime Stoppers and the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office are hoping renewed attention and the substantial reward will finally prompt someone to come forward.
The message from Padula is simple: do the right thing.
“Somebody who knows something, come forward, say something, and help us just put a little bit of closure to this,” he said. “We just ask that they do the right thing.”
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How to share a tip
Anyone with information about the hit-and-run that killed Vince Giamona on August 9, 2021, on Clear Creek Road in Kitsap County is urged to contact the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, 911, or Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
“It’s a small community. Someone knows what happened and who was driving that car, or hopefully, this story will jog someone’s memory and they will come forward,” Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound Executive Director Jim Fuda said. “We need to help this family get closure.”
Tipsters may be eligible for the $15,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest and charges. And you can remain anonymous.
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