Deputies in Polk County arrested a 51-year-old man on a DUI manslaughter charge in a hit-and-run that killed a 19-year-old pedestrian on U.S. 27 early this morning.
The Polk County Sheriff's Office charged Robert Edward Stewart in the death of Louis Rivera who was struck while walking along the west shoulder of the highway two miles south of Presidents Drive in Lake Wales at about 3 a.m.
Evidence showed Stewart left his lane and hit Rivera who was not in the roadway, the sheriff's office said.
Witnesses told deputies a dark pick-up hit Rivera, 191020 US Hwy 98 W., Frostproof, slowed, then accelerated south on U.S. 27. Deputies found a truck nearly a half-mile away that matched the description and had damage on the right front and a broken headlight.
The arrest affidavit said deputies found the driver asleep or passed out at the wheel and a beer can in the center console. Stewart was taken to jail after he failed a field sobriety test, the affidavit said.
In addition to the DUI manslaughter charge, Stewart, of Frostproof, was charged with failing to stop and render aid in an accident involving a death and refusing to submit to a breath test, the sheriff's office said.
He was booked into the Polk County Jail and is being held with no bond, the sheriff's
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