LAKELAND, Fla. (WFLA) — A woman in Lakeland has been taken into custody and charged following an incident where she allegedly left the scene of a deadly crash, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
In the early hours of last Monday, August 18, deputies were called to West Highland Street in Lakeland after receiving reports of a woman lying on the roadway. Upon arrival, they discovered a 27-year-old woman deceased, surrounded by fragments of a vehicle.
Among the debris were a fender liner with an identifiable part number and a segment of a front bumper. These components led detectives to conclude that the vehicle involved was a Kia Forte, specifically from models produced between 2019 and 2022.
Footage from a surveillance camera at a gas station near the Wabash Ave and W Highland St intersection depicted a black sedan heading west on W Highland from the crash site. This vehicle was observed turning right onto Wabash Ave, making a U-turn, and then returning to W Highland St, continuing its journey westward.
Following an examination of vehicles matching the description and registered in Polk County, detectives found a black Kia parked in a driveway on W Highland St. This car was missing a portion of the driver’s side bumper and fender liner. The missing parts correlated with the debris collected at the accident scene.
Upon interviewing the residents of the home, detectives identified 24-year-old Aliya Cruz as the owner and sole operator of the black Kia. Cruz recounted that she had left her home around 3:50 a.m. to start her 4 a.m. shift at the Publix warehouse, taking W Highland St, her customary route.
Cruz said as she was driving, a truck approached from the opposite direction with high beams on, which impaired her vision. The truck turned, and then she saw a woman lying in the road with her hands over her face. She told detectives that she swerved off the road and did not believe she hit the person, but wasn’t sure. Cruz said she turned right, made a U-turn and then continued west on W Highland St because she didn’t want to be late for work.
At the Publix warehouse, detectives confirmed Cruz’s arrival that morning and spoke with one of her supervisors, who said Cruz told him she “possibly killed someone.”
Cruz showed her supervisor photos of the damage to her car, and he told her she should have stopped and that she should call the police to report it.
PCSO said Cruz made other statements to her supervisor, like, “I don’t really want to say anything,” and “Well uhm, I know I didn’t hit them.”
Cruz was arrested on August 22 and has been charged with leaving the scene of a crash involving death, a first-degree felony.
