NEAR MIAMI, Fla. (WSVN) — Police have released surveillance video that, they said, captured the car involved in a hit-and-run near Miami that killed an elderly man, as they continue to search for the driver.
The footage shows a white car driving past what appears to be a drive-thru ATM near the scene of the Jan. 11 crash. Another camera captured the same vehicle driving across an intersection.
“I think we’re going to be able to catch the person that killed my father-in-law and left him behind,” said Luis Suarez, the victim’s son-in-law.
According to Miami-Dade Police, the driver of that vehicle hit 74-year-old Ramon Rodriguez as he was crossing Southwest Eighth Street, near 44th Avenue, just after 6:40 p.m., Saturday.
Investigators said the driver then kept going.
“Sometimes I feel like I want to cry. Sometimes I feel like I have something here in my neck,” said Dayamy Rodriguez, the victim’s daughter.
Rigoberto Rodriguez, a friend of the victim, no relation, said he found the pedestrian.
“He was here, wedged between the wall and the bushes,” said Rodriguez through a translator, Tuesday evening. “He was hidden in there. You could barely see him. If it wasn’t for the light on my phone, I wouldn’t have been able to see him.”
Rigoberto said he remembered hearing a scream and running to the road where he found his friend’s cellphone, then his body.
Rigoberto recorded cellphone video of the crime scene later that night, after police roped off a section of Southwest Eighth Street.
Rodriguez’s family said the victim lived in the area and had purchased lottery tickets at a nearby gas station before he was struck.
“They hit him so hard that he flew almost 30 yards away,” said Suarez.
Surveillance video shows Rodriguez from a distance as he crossed the road moments before he was struck.
Suarez said the newly released footage gives him and his family hope.
“I think he should do something, turn himself in, because we’re definitely going to catch him sooner or later,” he said.
Dayamy said she’s angry the driver did not stop to help her dad.
“It would have been different if he called 911, you know, right away,” she said.
Now this grieving family is pushing for changes. They said they want a crosswalk and lights in the area where the crash took place.
“I hope they catch this man, because what he did, it was wrong,” said Suarez.
As police continue their search, Rodriguez’s loved said they will keep fighting for justice.
“He was a very humble man. He was a hark worker. Everybody loved him,” said Suarez.
If you have any information on this hit-and-run or the driver’s whereabouts, 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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