ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - An Anchorage man charged with leaving the scene of a fatal crash with a pedestrian told police he spoke to the victim and she said she was fine.
Ruti Malietufa, 71, is charged with leaving an accident scene without assisting an injured person, a felony.
Malietufa was arraigned Monday. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison, the Anchorage Daily News reported.
Anchorage police responding to witnesses early Saturday night found a woman lying on Third Avenue just east of the Anchorage jail. Her body was surrounded by debris from a broken headlight, and one of her shoes was in the westbound lane.
Witnesses attempted CPR, but medics declared her dead.
Malietufa told police he had been driving east and he hit something. He said he stopped and returned to the scene.
“He saw a woman there . she told him she was alright,” charging documents said. “He double checked with her and after she again said she was fine.”
Malietufa drove to the Brown Jug liquor store, where his wife works. Detectives reviewed surveillance video and tracked Malietufa’s SUV to the store. Malietufa’s wife hours later called police and said Malietufa was willing to turn himself in. He was arrested Sunday at his home.
Police have not released the name of the crash victim pending notification of her relatives. They have not released information about why she was walking in the area.
The crash scene is adjacent to the city’s “sleep-off” sobering facility, an area of the Anchorage Correctional Complex. Anchorage Safety Patrol vans drop people off there if they are too intoxicated to care for themselves.
The crash scene also is two blocks from Bean’s Cafe, a nonprofit organization that serves meals to homeless people. Clients regularly walk in the area, Director Lisa Sauder said.
“It’s very dangerous,” she said. “Many times the sidewalks aren’t cleared. People go way too fast.”
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Information from: Anchorage Daily News, http://www.adn.com
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