Video, Witnesses Help Police Locate Suspect In Hit & Run
DENVER (CBS4) - Denver police have made an arrest in a hit-and-run accident that left two people injured late Monday night.
Raquel Lopez with Denver police said detectives with the Denver Police Traffic Investigations Bureau located the suspect vehicle on Wednesday.
Taylor Jo Mathis, 21, was arrested in connection with the accident. Mathis is being held for investigation of leaving a scene of an accident involving serious bodily injury.
Dramatic surveillance video provided clues after the hit-and-run accident. The video shows a car slamming into two people and then speeding away. In addition to video, a lot of people witnessed what happened.
The victims have serious injuries but they are expected to survive.
The hit-and-run happened at East Colfax Avenue and Ogden Street. The witnesses were able to provide police with a license plate number and a description of the car that hit the two victims right in the middle of Colfax.
The video shows the two victims standing on Colfax just inside the painted median. Moments later a white car headed westbound slams in to the man and woman, tossing one of them up in to the air.
"It was pretty unreal how he flew, just straight up in the air, legs flying," witness Ashley Woodard said.
Woodard was in a car with her friend going eastbound when they saw the couple in the middle of the street.
"My driver Paige said, 'What are they doing? Why are they in the middle of the street? They're going to get hit.' Literally as she said, 'They're going to get hit,' they got hit," Woodard said.
Woodard said they pulled over and called 911. She ran to stop traffic and help the victims, reaching the woman first.
"I was just asking her how she was doing, she said her hips hurt, her back hurt," Woodard said.
While Woodard comforted the woman she soon learned the driver never stopped.
"A guy walked up to me and said, 'Did you get the plate?' And I was like, 'Of the car that hit them?' He explained that nobody stopped."
Emergency crews soon arrived, wheeling the victims away to waiting ambulances. Woodard and her friend each gave statements to police. Based on what witnesses have said and surveillance video, police ended up looking for a white 2007 Kia Rio.
"How could somebody leave the scene of the crime like that?" Woodard said. "You'd think that just human nature you would stop and try and help."
Woodard said she was told the woman suffered a broken hip while the man was left with broken legs. Both are still in the hospital in serious condition.
A witness followed the car to get the license plate and reported it to police.
Anyone with more information is asked to call Denver police.
