WOODBRIDGE – A 31-year-old Texas man has been charged in connection to a fatal hit-and-run of a 31-year-old Elizabeth man on the Garden State Parkway in May, according to the New Jersey State Police.
Fornice Cary Boatner III was extradited back to New Jersey on June 10. He is lodged in the Middlesex County Correctional Facility in North Brunswick pending a detention hearing, according to police in a press release on June 21.
Boatner III was charged with vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash causing death, hindering, obstruction and tampering with evidence, police said.
On May 25, troopers from the New Jersey State Police (NJSP) Holmdel Station responded to report of a body found in a ditch off the roadway northbound on the Garden State Parkway at milepost 130.4 in Woodbridge Township. Detectives from the Troop “D” Criminal Investigation Office, State Police Major Crime Unit, Crime Scene Investigation Unit and Fatal Accident Investigation Unit, along with members of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and Crime Scene Investigation Unit identified Felipe Dos-Santos, as the victim and began investigating the crash, police said.
As a result, detectives determined that on May 22, at approximately 1 a.m., Dos-Santos was walking northbound on the shoulder of the Garden State Parkway in the area of milepost 130.4, when he was struck by a vehicle that allegedly fled the scene after the crash and continued traveling north. During the crash, Dos-Santos suffered fatal injuries.
Through various investigative means, detectives from the Troop “D” Criminal Investigation Office identified the suspect vehicle as a 2007 silver Dodge Ram with a temporary Texas license plate. Detectives developed Boatner as the suspect after discovering he was the owner of the vehicle and obtained information that he allegedly fled New Jersey to Cleveland, Texas following the crash.
In addition, detectives also discovered that Boatner was allegedly wanted out of Houston, Texas in connection to another hit-and-run accident, police said.
On May 28, members of the Houston Police Department and Liberty County Sheriff’s Office in Texas located Boatner and his Dodge Ram in Cleveland, Texas. A short time later, members of the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office arrested Boatner at his residence. He was lodged in the Liberty County Jail, police said.
During the ongoing investigation, detectives from the Troop “D” Criminal Investigation Office, with assistance from the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and Federal Bureau of Investigations – Houston Evidence Response Team, obtained evidence allegedly linking Boatner and his Dodge Ram to the crash. Detectives also determined that Boatner allegedly made repairs to the vehicle after the crash in an attempt to conceal the damage sustained, police said.
The following agencies assisted with the investigation: Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, Middlesex County Medical Examiner’s Office, Memphis Police Department, Tenn., Gwinnett County Police Department, Ga., Houston Police Department, Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, Liberty County 75th District Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigations – Houston Evidence Response Team, police said.
The case is being prosecuted by the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office.
