A passenger in the truck that allegedly ran down and killed Silas O'Brien three years ago testified Wednesday that he had no idea they'd hit anybody.

Brent Parent is on trial for charges including criminal negligence and dangerous driving causing death in B.C. Supreme Court. Prosecutors allege that Parent ran down 21-year-old Silas O'Brien with his Ford F350 pickup truck in the early morning hours of March 13, 2008.

His brother Lloyd Teneycke took the stand in New Westminster and said he was with Parent the morning of the crash.

He said that he did not see his brother hit anyone with his truck, and only learned about O'Brien's death when he saw a news story later that day. That report included a description of a white Ford pickup with a snowmobile rack -- just like Parent's.

Teneycke told the court that he was drunk and had fallen asleep while his brother drove him home after a night out. He said something woke him up, and Parent told him a vehicle that had rubbed up against his may have left the road.

They decided to go back to make sure everyone was OK, Teneycke testified, and when they saw the other vehicle at the side of the road, two people rushed towards the truck with their hands raised like they were going to throw something.

Teneycke said he told his brother, "Let's get the hell out of there."

O'Brien and his friends Luke Stephen and Sam Dooley were on their way to the Seattle airport to begin a Hawaiian vacation when prosecutors say they encountered Parent's truck on a rural stretch of road in Langley.

The friends say they were trying to pass a truck that was stopped in front of them when it sped up and started driving beside them.

They say their vehicle was forced into a ditch by the Ford, which took off. They got out of the vehicle to inspect for damage, but five minutes later, the truck returned. They testified that they waved their hands in an attempt to stop it, but it mowed O'Brien down.

The truck fled the scene, and the brothers were stopped by police later the same day. It took nearly a year before Parent was formally charged.

O'Brien's family read a statement outside the court Wednesday, and said the loss of the young man still stings.

"We miss our Silas so deeply. He was such a spark in our tight-knit family. Silas was taken so tragically and by such a senseless act," sister Elizabeth Nowakowski said.

Parent is expected to testify in his defence later in the trial.

"It's a tough thing to live with for three years," defence lawyer Vincent Michaels told CTV News. "It's been described as a road rage in the media for all of that time, and I hope that the evidence that's starting to emerge is starting to provide a more balanced view of what's actually taken place."

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Maria Weisgarber