Peel police make arrest in Mississauga hit-and-run that claimed the life of 56-year-old father

46-year-old Romany Elhariry of Mississauga is charged with failure to stop at the scene of an accident resulting in death.

Police in Peel Region have arrested and charged a 46-year-old man in connection with a fatal hit-and-run in Mississauga over the weekend.

The collision happened on Nov. 14 just after 9 p.m. at the intersection of Eglinton Avenue West and Fallingbrook Drive, west of Mavis Road. Police say a man was walking in the intersection when he was struck by a motorist who fled the scene.

The driver of that vehicle, which police identified as a silver or grey 2014-2018 four-door Mini Cooper S with a black roof and unique rims, took off without checking on him or rendering assistance, they said.

Police had also obtained security video of the suspect allegedly removing and concealing the vehicle’s rear license plate in the trunk before taking off.

The victim has been identified as 56-year-old Santosh Kumar Patra, of Mississauga.

On Tuesday, members of Peel Regional Police’s Major Collision Bureau located the vehicle believed to have been involved in the fatal crash and arrested 46-year-old Romany Elhariry of Mississauga.

He has been charged with failure to stop at the scene of an accident resulting in death.

Elhariry is set to appear at a Brampton court on Dec. 22.

Police ‘ecstatic’ to have made arrest

Speaking with CP24 on Wednesday afternoon, Peel police Const. Tyler Bell said they’re “ecstatic” to have made an arrest in this case.

Bell said the suspect did not turn himself in, adding this arrest comes as a result of a “collaborative effort” due in part to some investigative leads police already had from evidence left at the scene along with surveillance footage and “numerous” tips from the public.

“We’re quite pleased with that. We’re very grateful to the members of the public that helped, that allowed us to identify this person quite quickly,” he said, noting the fact that the accused allegedly attempted to conceal their identity by removing the vehicle’s license plate will surely not play out well in a court of law.

“Well, certainly it’s not a good look for the accused. It shows an intent to conceal their identity or at least make themselves harder to identify from police. So they’re going to have some explaining to do for sure.”

‘We’ve got a very good case here’

Bell said police would gather all of the evidence they can in this case, including “damning” video footage and present it in court.

“We’re pretty confident we’ve got a very good case here,” he said.

The constable added that this collision isn’t just some small fender-bender in a parking lot that people think they can get away with.

“We totally understand that people get frightened or they’re scared and they’re worried about repercussions,” Bell said, noting collisions involving pedestrians are often not the fault of the driver or as much so the driver.

“And so it’s perplexing to me to understand why people choose to flee in those moments. At the very least pick up the phone and dial 911. Who knows what could have happened? Maybe this person could have lived if, at least, help was called sooner.”

Lastly, he urged people to remember the “human side” of incidents like these and do the right thing.

Peel police are thanking the public for their help in this investigation, notably for providing video footage and information, which they say helped identify the suspect.

“An innocent member of our community lost their life due to the reckless actions of an individual — who we will hold fully accountable,” Deputy Chief Marc Andrews said in a news release.

“This investigation underscores the strong collaboration between police and the public that led to the suspect’s identification. We thank those who came forward with information and commend the swift, thorough actions of our investigators.”

Police are continuing to encourage witnesses to come forward.

This investigation is onging and anyone with further information is asked to call Peel police at 905-453-2121 ext. 3710, or Crime Stoppers anonymously.