AURORA | Police say they have identified and arrested a man suspected of a fatal hit-and-run crash Friday night that killed a 16-year-old boy riding his scooter in a marked bike lane on a southeast Aurora suburban street.
“Daveon Javon-James Jackson, 19, of Aurora, was arrested shortly before 7 p.m. tonight by members of our Traffic Investigations Unit,” Aurora police spokesperson Joe Moylan said in a statement Saturday night. “He is currently being booked on charges of leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death, a felony, as well as careless driving resulting in death, hit-and-run and failing to report a crash to police, traffic infractions.”
Police credited tips from the community in identifying the suspect, who investigators said drove a 2014 Dodge Charger.
Officers were called to the area of East Wesley Driver and South Dunkirk Street at about 11:15 p.m. after reports of a hit-and-run victim on the street and critically injured.
“When officers arrived at the scene, they located a 16-year-old boy who was conscious and had sustained serious injuries in the crash.,” Aurora Police spokesperson Joe Moylan said in a statement. “The teen was taken to a local hospital for treatment, where his condition declined rapidly. He died shortly after arriving at the hospital.”
A preliminary investigation revealed that the boy was riding his scooter north on Wesley in the bike lane and was approaching Dunkirk “when he was hit from behind by a (then-unknown) vehicle traveling the same direction,” Moylan said.
Police said the driver then sped off, likely driving north on Dunkirk toward East Jewell Avenue.
“Residents in the area reported to police they heard a vehicle with a loud exhaust speed from the scene about the time the fatal auto-pedestrian crash occurred, Moylan said.
Police asked residents in the area to check their outdoor security cameras between 11:15 p.m. and 11:20 p.m. for possible video showing details of the hit-and-run crash.