Driver flees police after hitting, killing bicyclist on Gratiot Avenue

25-year-old woman killed Thursday night; police arrest 30-year-old Richmond Township man

NEW HAVEN, Mich. – A 25-year-old woman wrapped up a night shift Thursday at the Subway restaurant at 27 Mile Road and Gratiot Avenue and started to bike home.

She never made it.

She was about 40 yards from the parking lot when she was struck by a driver headed northbound on Gratiot Avenue. Moments later, police say two women saw the suspected driver stranding outside of the vehicle with the woman's lifeless body lying nearby in the road.

However, the driver fled before police arrived.

"Several neighbors in and around local subdivisions there were calling about a suspicious person, somebody knocking at the door. Approximately 3 hours later we were able to locate him," said Macomb County Sheriff Anthony Wickersham.

Within a mile of the crash site, a K-9 unit with Chesterfield Township and Richmond police found the driver hiding under a blanket in a RV.

"He had taken off all his clothes with the exception of the underwear. The clothes were all wet -- must have been running through the swamp or a wooded area, and he appeared to have been intoxicated," said Wickersham.

A 30-year-old Richmond man was arrested. Investigators say beer bottles were found in the vehicle.

People who live in the area say cars drive too fast along Gratiot Avenue and don't give enough room for pedestrians or cyclists.


About the Author:

Priya joined WDIV-Local 4 in 2013 as a reporter and fill-in anchor. Education: B.A. in Communications/Post Grad in Advanced Journalism