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News footage captures a memorial for Radahámez Rodriguez Pérez at the site in Anchorage, Alaska, where he was allegedly struck and killed by a drunk driver (KTUU).
An Alaska woman is out on bond after police said she drove drunk, struck and killed a cyclist, then tried to bribe officers to make it all go away.
Stephanie Dill, aged 40, was released on a $10,000 bond after facing charges of manslaughter, reckless driving, bribery of a public servant, DUI, and refusal to undergo a sobriety test. The Anchorage police stated that Dill allegedly hit 48-year-old Radahámez Rodriguez Pérez with her vehicle on June 19 as he was cycling. Police confirmed that he was pronounced dead at the scene, where Dill declined to take a Breathalyzer test. Court documents acquired by KTUU, a local NBC affiliate, mentioned that she appeared to have consumed alcohol, observable by her “bloodshot and watery” eyes.
But Dill”s alleged behavior after she was arrested resulted in even more criminal charges.
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According to police, after Dill rejected the field sobriety tests, she instructed them to “just arrest” her. The Alaska Daily News indicated that the police’s summary statement disclosed Dill allegedly tried to bribe the responding officers with $1,000 in cash for her release. The report detailed that Dill “offered the arresting officer $1,000 to drop her off further down the road and ‘pretend like nothing happened.'”
Police asked Dill to repeat herself, and she allegedly “assured him that she had $1,000 cash on her and would give it to him.”
According to police, surveillance cameras captured the moments that led up to the fatal collision. The charging document obtained by Alaska Public Media stated that Dill’s Mazda SUV was seen leaving the parking lot of a restaurant and heading the wrong way on a southbound road.
The Mazda then reportedly “swerv[ed] badly” across the median, going faster than the posted 50 mph speed limit. At the same time, Pérez was seen on his bike “riding on the paved shoulder of the east side of C Street.” KTUU reported that in court on Thursday, Pérez’s family said he was on the phone while wearing headphones, talking to his mother, when he was hit.
Police said that the front end of Dill’s SUV had significant damage including a smashed windshield and a crumpled hood. Blood was observed on the passenger side of the vehicle.
Five hours after her arrest, Dill submitted to a Breathalyzer test while in police custody and blew a BAC of 0.178 — more than twice Alaska’s legal limit of 0.08.
KTUU reported that Dill did not show up for her scheduled court appearance on Thursday, despite being out on bond. Her next court appearance is scheduled for July 31.
