Miami PD Believes 16-Year-Old Diani Gomez Sanchez Was Killed By Hit-And-Run Driver
MIAMI (CBS Miami) – Miami police are looking for the driver of a gray sedan they believe struck and killed a 16-year-old girl on the 79 Street Causeway on Saturday.
The body of Diani Gomez Sanchez wasn't found until early Sunday evening in the bushes off the causeway near the Pelican Harbor Marina.
"At first we were investigating it as a homicide. But now we believe it was a hit-and-run called in at 8:43 a.m. Saturday," said Miami Police Chief Art Acevedo.
Acevedo said the gray sedan would have heavy front damage on the passenger side and likely a cracked windshield.
Gomez Sanchez's family said she left the house around 6:30 a.m. for her run on Saturday.
Her uncle, Denis Omar Gomez, said the family didn't think much about it since she had done it a number of times before.
When the 16-year-old didn't come home, her family called the police and began posting flyers. Gomez said he was doing just that when he found his niece's body near the Pelican Harbor Marina.
"I saw her phone and I said this is my niece's phone, and then I saw her shirt that her mom said she was wearing," he said.
Her family said she was polite and focused on school. She attended Miami Senior High.
"They took away the only niece I had in this country. They took away the most beautiful thing I had in my life," said Gomez.
If you have any information call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS.