WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- A Waukesha County man has been charged in connection to the hit-and-run death of a tow truck driver on Christmas Eve. 

Christopher Sponholz, 39, faces a felony charge of hit-and-run involving death. 

Officials say the crash happened just before 7 p.m. when the tow operator was loading a disabled vehicle onto his truck on I-94. He was struck by a blue minivan that fled the scene. Officials said a tip led to the suspect, who turned himself in.

According to a criminal complaint, a witness said that she called a tow truck for her vehicle. She said she was in the cab of the tow truck when the tow operator, identified as 40-year-old Hussain Farhat, was outside the truck starting to tow her vehicle. The witness said she heard a loud sound then cars started to pull over. She got out to see why, and she saw Farhat not moving on the ground. 

Another witness, according to the complaint, said she was traveling eastbound with her husband. She says they saw a minivan speed past them and saw it swerve more towards the shoulder. The witness said she told her husband "this dude is going to hit that guy." She said she then saw a piece fly off the tow truck and tow truck operator in a reflective vest rolling on the ground.  Per complaint, the witness said she  saw the mini-van speed off and not slow down until they took the next exit. The witness estimated the van was going 80-90 mph. 

Police arrived and stated that the tow truck had all of its lights activated, including the yellow warning lights on top of the cab, and the truck was visible at the crest of the hill. 

The next day, Wednesday, Dec. 25, police received an anonymous tip about the whereabouts of the van and suspect to an address in Wales. Police went to the address and found the van matching the description. A family member told them Sponholz turned himself in to the sheriff's office. Per complaint, police found that Sponholz turned himself in at the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department in the lobby.  

Police made contact with a friend of Sponholz's, according to the complaint. The friend told police that Sponholz told him he thought he hit a deer and was upset because the van belongs to the friend's father. His friend said Sponholz told him he didn't see any lights or anything when he hit the "deer" but got home and saw the damage.   Sponholz told police that he wasn't exactly sure about everything, and he didn't want to say anything without speaking to a lawyer first. Officers asked if he had any questions, and Sponholz only asked "what happened to the guy who was struck?" 

The complaint states Sponholz was the only person in the minivan at the time.

The victim, 40-year-old Hussain Farhat, was from Chicago. He was honored Wednesday, Dec. 25, when more than 50 tow trucks and more than 100 people gathered in his memory. 

In court Thursday, cash bond was set at $750,000. 

Sponholz is due back in court Feb. 5.