OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – A woman was arrested in connection with a hit-and-run crash Monday evening at Buena Ventura Boulevard and Watts Lane.
The Florida Highway Patrol said Stephanie Cruz Rodriguez, 21, was traveling north on Buena Ventura Boulevard in a Toyota car as Christopher Morgan, 25 was headed south on a motorcycle.
Troopers said both had a green light, but Rodriguez pulled into the direct path of Morgan, causing him to strike the side of her vehicle. Morgan died of his injuries.
Witnesses reported seeing Rodriguez and a passenger get out and approach Morgan, but then quickly get back in the car, which had two children inside, and leave.
Troopers said one of the witnesses chased Rodriguez down and had her return to the scene of the crash.
The Florida Highway Patrol's Steve Montiero said he was thankful the woman who witnessed the crash made sure the driver returned.
"Why? Let alone you hit a dog, I would stop, but you a hit a person, you know. You hit a person," Montiero said. "You put eyes on someone's husband, someone's dad, someone's friend, and then you leave them there. There is really no excuse on why would you walk away."
Montiero said the driver and passenger got out of the car, walked over, looked and touched Morgan, then went back to the car and left him there.
Rodriguez posted a Facebook Live video about the incident to her Facebook page.
"I didn't mean to do anything on purpose. You don't know when someone is going to die," Rodriguez said. "You get into a car ... anything can happen and he was going way too fast, and people didn't even see he was going extremely fast. I didn't see him. It's not my fault."
Aldo Gastelbando, one of Morgan's close friends, was with him right before the crash and had to call Morgan's wife to tell her what happened.
"I tried to tell her, you know, she was just saying, 'No, he's good. I'm going to see him right now. He's probably just in the bed resting,'" Gastelbando said. "She was in denial. She didn't want to hear it. She didn't want to believe it."
Rodriguez was arrested and charged with leaving the scene of a fatal crash.
Morgan's loved ones created a GoFundMe to help pay for his funeral expenses.
“I miss him,” said Shemeem Campbell, a cousin to the victim. “That was my baby. I raised him and I miss him a lot.”
Family and friends bowed their heads in prayer Tuesday night, consoling Morgan's grieving widow.
“I can't imagine how she feels,” said Sam Jimez, a friend. “I have two kids of my own and I couldn't bring them here. It's not easy. I couldn't imagine losing my husband, ever.”
Another cousin, Anthony Toledo, added, “The fact that she left and he suffered was probably the worst part about it and the video that came on afterward didn't help.”