FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A South Florida father and son have been charged together in fatal hit-and-run crash.
Police have charged 24-year-old Pedro Vasallo II with leaving the scene of a crash involving death and his 61-year old father, Pedro Vasallo, with accessory after the fact of first degree.
This in relation to the death of 58-year-old Kenneth Solovay, who police said struck and killed around 6 a.m. on Dec. 14.
He was riding his bike along the 2000 block of Davie Boulevard when investigators alleged Vasallo II plowed into him while driving a 2019 Mercedes.
A seven-page arrest warrant outlined a timeline detectives pieced together using surveillance footage.
According to the warrant, detectives were able to utilize surveillance cameras in the area to nail down a license plate number, tracking it back to a Plantation address.
From there, investigators located the vehicle matching the license plate number and “observed damage to the front right corner hood and windshield area…consistent with striking of bicyclist.”
Investigators say the 24-year-old who worked at Sway Nightclub in Fort Lauderdale was captured on surveillance cameras leaving an area parking garage near the nightclub, heading in the direction of the crash site.
A search warrant also uncovered a video conversation where a woman identified as Donna Compagniotte was discussing the incident, saying Vasallo II hit a bicyclist and returned home.
Compagniotte, in a sworn statement, revealed that Vasallo II came home and told her he was in a crash.
Both men were arrested and taken into custody on Tuesday.
Family members of Solovay declined to speak publicly following the arrests. His former colleagues are in mourning, with his bio-tech company’s CEO saying in a statement:
“There is no way to overstate Ken’s importance and contributions to the progress we’ve made at ILiAD during the past 12 years. We will all deeply miss his exceptional work ethic, uncompromising standards, steady hand, good nature, and commitment to the mission. But most of all, we will miss him.”
Both Vasallo’s were granted bond and are expected to be released from jail sometime Thursday, but Vasallo II will also be fitted for an ankle monitor and must remain in Broward County while awaiting trial.