A 69-year-old man from Hamilton has been charged in connection with a hit-and-run that claimed the life of a pedestrian in Mississauga late Tuesday afternoon, police say. The crash occurred at the intersection of Winston Churchill Boulevard and Dundas Street East, in the Erin Mills neighbourhood, shortly before 6 p.m. and involved a pick-up truck. Police described the victim as a man in his 60s. During a Thursday morning news conference, Const. Tyler Bell-Morena, of Peel Regional Police, shared that the victim lives in the area where the collision occurred. He added that they believe he was returning home at the time he was hit. Further details of the victim’s identity have not been released by police. Investigators had released footage of the moments before the collision on Wednesday as they worked to identify and apprehend the suspect. They also provided details about the suspect’s vehicle: a 1999 to 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 500-series pickup truck that is two-tone and dark in colour. Bell-Morena confirmed that police took 69-year-old Aubrey Lawrence, of Hamilton, into custody on Wednesday night after positively identifying his pick-up truck near his home. That vehicle, they said, has been seized. Lawrence has been charged with fail to remain at accident resulting in death. Bell-Morena said there is a possibility that additional charges may be laid as the investigation moves forward. Police want to speak with witness On Thursday morning, the media officer also made an appeal for information about an “interaction” he said investigators learned about from canvassing the area following the crash. He said the driver of the pick-up truck and another motorist who witnessed the deadly collision, got into an exchange in the parking lot of a nearby plaza with a Home Depot and a McDonald’s. Police are urging that individual to contact them. “It looks like the person was trying to to to go after this person, hold them accountable for the collision. We’d obviously very much like to speak to this person as they have invaluable firsthand accounts of what transpired,” Bell-Morena said. He added that the fact that a bystander told the motorist that he’d struck a pedestrian helps them in their efforts to prosecute him for his actions. This investigation is ongoing. Anyone with further information is asked to contact Peel Regional Police or Crime Stoppers anonymously.
