Hit-and-run victim dies months after crash as Bloomington police continue search for suspect
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — A family is heartbroken and a driver is on the run after crashing into an Uber carrying Kelvin Conteh back in December.
Police say Conteh died five days ago after being in a coma for months.
Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges says a nationwide warrant has been issued for 20-year-old Eivi Almontes and charges have been upgraded to criminal vehicular homicide.
Fatmata Ndiaye held back tears on the phone as she spoke about her brother Conteh.
"It has just been the worst nightmare- it still doesn't feel real," she said.
Ndiaye said her brother immigrated to the United States from Sierra Leone five months before the crash.
"His dream was to establish himself so they (wife and children) could eventually join him in the states," Ndiaye said.
According to the criminal complaint, Conteh was riding in an Uber that was hit at the intersection of 12th Avenue South and 94th Street in Bloomington around 10:30 p.m. last December.
Ndiaye said he was on his way to work a nightshift at Walmart.
The charging document says a witness saw Almontes' sedan blow through a stop sign, crash directly into the right side of the Uber and then drive away from the crash.
Evidence and witness testimony gathered by investigators led them to a body shop in New Hope where a vehicle belonging to Almontes was found. The charging document says a piece of the bumper that was left at the crash scene fit perfectly into the broken part of Almontes' vehicle.
Online court records show Almontes has five speeding tickets and one for driving with a suspended license.
The complaint says social media data puts him in an area near Mexico City.
"The arm of the law is very long and I think it does extend into a country that's south of the United States" Hodges said. "I would strongly suggest turning yourself in."
Ndiaye is grateful for all the medical care her brother received and is hopeful justice will be served.
"Do the right thing and come forward and own up to the cowardly act and face the consequences," she said.
Conteh's memorial service will be on Wednesday.
Anyone with information is asked to call Bloomington Police at 952-563-4900.