KEY BISCAYNE, FLA. (WSVN) - A cyclist remains in the hospital after, family members said, he was the victim of a hit-and-run on the Rickenbacker Causeway and now they’re demanding justice.
Fifty-year-old Jorge Rouco was riding his bike westbound on the Rickenbacker Causeway at around 7 p.m. Tuesday when he was struck by a car. He was then found by Luis Hernandez and rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital.
“Basically when we found him, he looked like he was in a lot of pain and he looked pretty bad,” Hernandez said through a translator.
Rouco suffered a host of injuries, including fractured bones and internal bleeding.
“My husband does this for a hobby with all his friends. Every Tuesday and Thursday, they’re on that Rickenbacker,” said Rouco’s wife, Cynthia Vasconez.
Family members were afraid he wouldn’t make it Tuesday night, but said his condition has improved and he is now in stable condition.
Vasconez said her husband has been able to say a few words. “He’s really upset that the person didn’t stay to help him, and just left him there,” she said. “We got lucky because he’s alive, but I see on the news all the time of the ones that don’t make it.”
Now, his family wants to know more about the person who left the husband and father of two alone in the street.
“That’s what kills us. How can somebody be out there and not stop?” Vasconez asked. “I know somebody saw what was happening because there’s just way too many people on the Rickenbacker, so if somebody saw something — which we know they did — if you could just call in, because they have to be brought to justice. This is not right.”
A witness told the family that a little white car with a broken mirror had hit Rouco.
Rouco has already started talking about what needs to be done to make cyclists safer, like a stronger police presence and cameras along the Rickenbacker Causeway.
If you have any information on this hit-and-run, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
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