INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis man is facing a felony charge in connection to a hit-and-run crash that killed a mother of five in late September.
IMPD arrested 38-year-old Mario Martinez last week.
Prosecutors have charged him with leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death.
On Sunday, Sept. 24, IMPD said a silver Jeep, captured on cameras in the area, likely struck 28-year-old Alexis Davis and drove off.
NOTE: The above video is from a previous report when police were looking for the Jeep involved.
Davis was hit while crossing East Michigan Street, near Woodruff Place, around 2 a.m.
Court records say right after seeing news reports of the deadly hit-and-run, the suspect's father reached out to his neighbor, who is an off-duty officer.
He told the officer his son, Mario Martinez, was likely responsible for the crime and said Martinez's damaged Jeep was in their garage.
Court documents say he also said Martinez admitted to driving the Jeep when the collision happened, was scared and didn't know what to do.
The probable cause affidavit says IMPD discovered heavy damage to the Jeep in the garage.
They say it also matched pieces of the Jeep found at the crash site.
Investigators also matched Martinez's cellphone coordinates on the night of the crash with the location of the hit-and-run.
Police arrested Martinez Nov. 30.
He bonded out of jail Dec. 1, posting a $6,000 cash bond.
Martinez has an initial court hearing Tuesday morning.
Davis died at IU Health Methodist Hospital shortly after the crash.
Her family can't understand why the driver didn't stop.
"Nobody deserves this. Nobody deserves to be hit and just, you know, be left for dead," said Davis' sister, Niesha Lomax.
According to Indy Pedestrian Safety Crisis, there have been 40 fatal crashes involving a pedestrian or bicyclist this year in Marion County. As of Dec. 3, the safety organization has also received 621 reports of a pedestrian or bicyclist struck in 2023.