Arrest Made In Coral Gables Fatal Hit & Run
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CORAL GABLES (CBSMiami) – Police have made an arrest in a hit and run that killed a bicyclist.
Coral Gables police arrested 41-year-old Juan Carlos Redero. He was taken to jail Friday.
"We believe this is a start of the accountability process in writing the final chapter of the victim's life and how that person died," said Interim Coral Gables Police Chief Edward Hudak Jr.
According to the investigators, the accident happened on March 26 around 3 AM at the intersection of Bird Road and Granada Boulevard when he struck Carlos Gilberto Suarez, 42.
Police said Redero kept on going at least three blocks with Suarez's bike underneath his car but when he finally stopped, police said someone was watching.
Click here to WATCH CBS4 Marybel Rodriguez's report.
"There was eyewitness account of how after 2100 feet after impact the individual on his bike the person exited the car. Mr. Redero removed the bike from underneath his vehicle," Hudak said.
Officials said the witness followed Redero and called 9-1-1 and managed to give them a description of the vehicle and partial tag. With that information, and a piece of the car left on the scene, investigators were able to locate the gray Nissan Altima at Redero's home.
The vehicle had considerable damage, including a "huge" indentation on the front windshield. Redero, according to the police report, hid the vehicle in the back of his home and "attempted to hide the damage to the vehicle by placing a child's kiddie pool leaning over the damaged area" and also placed a trampoline to hide the tag.
And after several weeks of investigation, Coral Gables police said they were able to arrest Redero who was once again identified by the witness.
"In her own right I believe she is a heroine. She was the designated driver for a group of people and she positively identified Mr. Redero after the fact," Hudak said.
Redero is being charged with tampering with evidence and leaving the scene of a crash involving death.