Law enforcement in New York reportedly allowed a wanted man to leave a minor car accident just minutes before the suspect is alleged to have fatally struck a pedestrian with a vehicle while high on drugs.
Suspect Antonio Robles-Sanchez, 42, was involved in a fender bender in Scarsdale, located roughly 30 miles from New York City in Westchester County, just after 10:25 a.m Aug. 26, according to The Journal News of Rockland/Westchester.
No one was injured in the accident, and there was minor damage to Robles-Sanchez’s car and another vehicle. A rookie Scarsdale officer, identified as Ainsley Brown, assisted the suspect and the other person involved in the accident to exchange insurance information and move the vehicles from blocking traffic at an intersection, the outlet reported.
It is unclear how much time Robles-Sanchez spent interacting with the officer. But he was allowed to go on his way. It is unclear if the officer ran a check on Robles-Sanchez’s license, which may have flagged a warrant for his arrest in Pennsylvania.
The Scarsdale Police Department in New York. (Google Maps )
The Journal News reported an internal investigation was opened into the matter. Scarsdale Police did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment Wednesday.
Less than 45 minutes after the accident, sometime before 11:15 a.m., Robles-Sanchez allegedly drove his Dodge pickup truck over a curb in the neighboring town of Greenburgh, striking and killing 65-year-old Stephanie Kavourias.
Stephanie Kavourias was killed in an alleged hit-and-run in New York last month. (Hartsdale Public Parking District)
Emergency response teams performed CPR on Kavourias and transported her to a hospital, where she died from her injuries. A neighbor of Kavourias was coincidentally the other motorist involved in Robles-Sanchez’s first accident in Scarsdale, The Journal News reported.
Robles-Sanchez allegedly fled the fatal accident, but one of his truck’s license plates came off as he drove. White Plains Police found the vehicle about 2½ miles away from the fatal accident and found Robles-Sanchez leaning over the steering wheel of his truck.
A Scarsdale Police vehicle. (Scarsdale Police Department)
Officers spotted loose pills in the vehicle, and the suspect allegedly told them later he had taken heroin and cocaine, also known as a speedball.
Robles-Sanchez was arrested and faces felony charges, including vehicular manslaughter and leaving the scene of a fatal accident, the outlet reported.
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Police later ran a license check and discovered he was wanted in Pennsylvania for a 2018 arrest for the possession of more than 100 oxycodone pills. A warrant was issued for his arrest when he didn’t appear in court for his trial, The Journal News reported.
Robles-Sanchez remains in the Westchester County prison, prison records show, and is scheduled to next appear in court Sept. 19.
The Westchester County Department of Corrections in New York. (Google Maps )
Kavourias previously served as the director of the Hartsdale Public Parking District, which mourned her death on its website.
“In the midst of storms, floods, electrical outages during her tenure, one would see Stephanie working alongside her colleagues in the garages and lots. Prior to her tenure at the District, she worked for many years at the Town of Greenburgh, lastly as Zoning Secretary,” the parking district group wrote.
“She was also a former member of the Planning Board for the Town. Stephanie, or Steffie, as many called her, was a true pioneer for women holding leadership positions in government.”
