Lyndon Crowther, 36, was walking home in the snow after a night out when he was struck. He died instantly.

The former pupil of Salterlee Primary School, Shibden, and Clare Hall Secondary School, Halifax, was found lying in the road by a group of teenagers in Amityville village. New York Det Sgt Kevin Cain said: "We have not determined who hit him and inquiries are ongoing."

He said the driver faced being charged with leaving the scene of a fatal crash and any additional charges arising from evidence.

Officers are checking garages and paint-spray booths to trace the vehicle and driver.

Mr Crowther's death has shattered relatives and friends on both sides of the Atlantic. A memorial service for him in New York last week was attended by 250 people. His body has now been brought home.

Lyndon's eldest brother, Ashley, 40, of Shelf, said Lyndon made friends wherever he went. "People liked his company. He was very outgoing.

"He wasn't married. He was a fun-loving guy who knew a lot of people in Halifax and he made a lot of people laugh."

He trained as a sheet metal worker and was apprenticed at Halifax Sheet Metal and Ventilation Ltd, where he worked for 10 years.

After a short spell in America he worked in Holland before returning to the US. He worked there as a metal worker.

Ashley said Lyndon had been out with friends and was walking home alone in the snow when tragedy struck.

Police found a UK telephone number, belonging to a friend of the brothers, among Lyndon's possessions. He had to break the devastating news to Ashley.

A New York inquest found he died from his multiple injuries instantly.
Lyndon also leaves his father Gerald, of Northowram, and another brother, Grayson, 38, who lives in Spain.

His funeral is tomorrow at Park Wood Crematori-um, Elland, at 3pm, which is being arranged by Ashley.

He has chosen three songs in tribute: Pink Floyd's Shine on You Crazy Diamond; Cold Play's Fix You and Frank Sinatra's New York, New York.