Osceola bagel shop owner helps police track down suspected hit-and-run driver

ST. CLOUD, Fla. - St. Cloud Police say they’ve secured an arrest warrant for a hit-and-run driver who slammed into a woman on her bike. 

Laura Zuluaga was left with a broken clavicle, road rash and burns. 

"It doesn’t get easier," Zuluaga said of her injuries. 

Since the Nov. 21 accident on Narcoossee Road, police have been searching for the driver of the white pickup truck that didn’t stop. Lonny McDougal says that investigation led to his bagel shop. 

"They were able to track the plate to when I owned it on the van. That’s what made them go to the bagel store to contact me," said McDougal, who owns NY Bagels. 

He says his old plates somehow ended up on the hit-and-run driver’s truck. 

McDougal says after doing some thinking, he remembered that the plate was transferred to an RV sitting in a trailer park in St. Cloud. 

"I said to him, ‘While you’re doing that, I would look around there because if the plate's missing – you might find the white pickup truck there,’" McDougal recalled. 

According to a police report, officers did indeed find the truck.  Investigators say when they talked to the driver, he admitted being in the area of the accident, but said didn’t recall striking any cyclists. 

He also told police he found McDougal’s old plates in the dumpster and used them because his had expired. 

"Next thing I know he calls me up a few hours later and says, ‘I found your plate, I found the pickup truck, and I found the driver,’" McDougal said. 

Zuluaga says she’s relieved. 

"I just still can’t believe somebody would hurt a human being and leave them on the side of the road," she said. 

She’s also grateful to police and the man who helped crack the case. 

"I hope that we get to meet in person and share a bagel," Zuluaga said. 

"I would love to. I’ll have breakfast with her anytime," McDougal told us. 

On Saturday, Zuluaga and McDougal met and her bicycle group did a tribute ride to thank him.

Watch FOX 35 News for the latest updates.