Driver charged with DUI after man fatally struck in hit-and-run

MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Police have detained a driver in connection to a fatal hit-and-run in Miami Beach.

Miami Beach Police responded to the scene along 15th Street and Alton Road, just after 3 a.m., Thursday.

According to officials, a man, later identified as 52-year-old Joseph Twardy, was walking across the road when he was struck by Volodymyr Shyshko, who was behind the wheel of a white Volkswagen Jetta.

Miami Beach Fire Rescue pronounced him dead at the scene.

Meanwhile, the 37-year-old took off before eventually being stopped by police at 59th Street and Collins Avenue.

Officers conducted a DUI test on Shyshko before he was checked out by fire rescue crews.

“Investigators noticed signs of impairment from the driver of that vehicle,” said Miami Beach Police Officer Ernesto Rodriguez.

Police said Shyshko told them he thought he hit something but wasn’t sure what he struck with his vehicle.

7News cameras captured the vehicle at the scene with damage on the front, side and windshield.

“The damage as well as DNA is going to play a key role in this investigation’s forensics,” said Rodriguez.

Officers and crime scene investigators had their hands full with the different scenes.

“We have two separate investigations running, a DUI investigation from 59th Street and Collins Avenue as well as a fatal hit-and-run accident at 15th Street and Alton Road. A lot of work lies ahead of our investigators. We’re already in contact with the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office. Our traffic homicide investigators have been out on the scene, investigating, piecing all of this together, determining who was at the wheel at the time of the crash,” said Rodriguez.

After being evaluated, officers put Shyshko in a patrol car and hauled him off to the station for questioning.

“The damage as well as the DNA is gonna play a key role in this investigation,” Rodriguez said.

A tow truck removed the vehicle from the scene.

Both north and southbound lanes on Alton Road were shut down as police investigated, but the roadways have since reopened.

Shyshko faces felony charges including driving under the influence, vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of a crash and a misdemeanor charge of marijuana possession.

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