An Indianapolis man is wanted in connection with a fatal Whiting hit-and-run in September after a night gambling at a local casino, according to Lake Superior Court records.
Dean Lee Monroe III, 27, of the 2300 block of Fescue Place, was charged Wednesday.
An arrest warrant was issued that day. Bail is set at $3,000 cash surety.
Police found Richard Garza in the street around 2 a.m. Sept. 13 near the intersection of Indianapolis Boulevard and 120th Street in Whiting, charges state.
He had severe injuries including a fractured skull, brain damage and fractured legs. Garza was pronounced dead at the scene at 3:15 a.m., according to the Lake County Coroner’s Office.
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He was initially listed as a John Doe on the release. Garza was a local that frequented nearby bars, police said.
A surveillance video from a nearby BP gas station showed a black Nissan Altima driving south with a smashed driver-side windshield, court records said.
Monroe was in town gambling the night before at the Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, according to interviews and surveillance video cited in court documents. His Nissan Altima was registered to a family member.
Police identified Monroe from security video from a nearby White Castle on 119th Street where he ordered food with his own debit card minutes before the crash, documents state.
After the crash, Monroe went to his grandfather’s house in Gary, before going out to Midway Airport the next day for a rental car, records state.
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He tried to call an East Chicago auto glass shop, before towing the car to Miller Collision in Gary telling the owner’s brother he was out of town and needed to fix the car “very quickly,” according to court records.
The man said he remembered the car and pulled up the $3,500 repair estimate, noting the car had a broken windshield and extensive body damage on the driver’s side. The bill was paid in cash, he said.
Detectives caught up with Monroe in Indianapolis near Watch Childcare, his new business, documents state. He seemed “upbeat” then “solemn” when they told him why they were there, charges state.
Monroe asked to go inside to make calls and get his staff “lined up,” then returned and told detectives he wouldn’t say anything more, the affidavit states.
He was charged with leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death or catastrophic injury, a level 4 felony, leaving the scene of an accident with moderate or serious bodily injury, level 6 felony, and two misdemeanor counts of leaving the scene of an accident.
The top charge, level 4 felony, carries a possible penalty between 2-12 years with an advisory sentence of 6 and up to a $10,000 fine.
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