POMPANO BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Authorities have arrested a driver who, they said, killed two men riding a scooter in Pompano Beach and then fled the scene.
According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, the crash occurred near West McNab Road, along the 1200 block of South Dixie Highway, just before 6:45 a.m., Sunday.
Investigators said the victims, who were in their 40s or 50s, were struck by a silver sedan traveling at a very high rate of speed.
“The scooter was apparently traveling northbound on South Dixie Highway when a vehicle described as a silver Toyota Camry rear-ended the [scooter],” said BSO Sgt. Donald Prichard. “That vehicle then took off from the scene.”
A woman who spotted the victims during her morning commute pulled over and began recording cellphone video.
“Did you call 911?” the woman is heard asking in the video.
“Yeah,” replied a witness.
Deputies responded to the scene and found the victims on the northbound lanes. They were pronounced dead at the scene.
Cellphone footage recorded by a 7News viewer hours later showed debris from the crash scattered across the roadway, the victims’ bodies covered with yellow tarps and the damaged scooter.
Deputies closed off the area while they investigated the crash.
After receiving a tip, detectives were able to locate the banged-up Camry along the 600 block of Southwest Seventh Street, less than a mile away from the scene of the violent collision.
“A citizen had made a call in reference to this crash, and they located the vehicle based on that citizen complaint,” said Prichard.
Investigators said the driver, 24-year-old Evil Morataya Perez, did not get very far. He was taken into custody shortly after.
He has been charged with driving with a suspended license and failing to remain on the scene of a fatal crash.
The Camry sustained front-end and hood damage, a broken rear-view mirror and a shattered windshield. the car was later towed away as evidence.
If Morataya Perez is convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of four years in prison.
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