Hit-and-run driver who killed scooter rider has been arrested, BSO says

Broward deputies charged a driver who they say fatally hit a man on a scooter in Lighthouse Point and then sped away late Sunday. He was arrested Thursday.

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Gustavo Mendez, 39, of Boca Raton, is facing a charge of failure to remain on scene in an accident involving death, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said.

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Around 9:25 p.m Sunday, the unidentified stand-up-scooter rider was crossing through the intersection of Northeast 49th Street and North Federal Highway when Mendez drove into him in his gray Toyota Corolla, deputies said.

After the crash, Mendez sped away, police say. Lighthouse Point Fire Rescue took the scooter rider to Broward Health North Medical Center. He later died.

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Lighthouse Point police asked BSO’s Traffic Homicide Unit to take over the case.

Deputies said Wednesday they had identified Mendez as the driver, and found him and the vehicle in Boca Raton.

The sheriff’s office filed an arrest warrant for Mendez. The Lighthouse Point Police Department executed the warrant and arrested Mendez.

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As of Friday, he was still in the Broward County Main Jail.