Family asks for public's help to find driver in fatal hit-and-run weekend crash in Miramar
FORT LAUDERDALE -- Relatives of a man who was struck and killed during a hit-and-run crash in Miramar pleaded Tuesday for the public's help to find the driver.
Silvio Jose Ortega, 35, was struck and killed has not been publicly identified but had only been in the U.S. for a year after moving from Nicaragua.
During a news conference with the family, officials released new video that shows the moment the man was struck while crossing the the 6500 block of Pembroke Road around 2:15 a.m. Sunday.
Surveillance video showed Martinez walking but crossed the road during a moment that was not on camera even as a car crashes into him, sending items flying into the air.
Investigators said the unidentified driver of the white car left fled from the area and did not render any assistance after hitting the man, a violation of state law.
The first responders who were called to the scene said the man was dead when they arrived.
Speaking through an interpreter, Ortega's family urged anyone with information to come forward.
"She wishes that they would have come forward," the relative said. "And that they would have stopped and helped him, maybe take him to a hospital or call for help."
Suyen Ortega Martinez said her brother did not have children but he was helping raise hers after moving to the U.S. just a year ago.
"He wanted to maybe get a mechanic shop," Martinez said.
Police said they are working to find the driver, and their clues have led them out of state.
"We located a vehicle but we haven't confirmed that it was involved yet," a police spokesperson said. "We have investigators traveling now as we speak to go see this car."
