Racine Man Gets 25 Years In Fatal Hit-And-Run Crash: Report

MILWAUKEE COUNTY, WI -- An 18-year-old Racine County man has been sentenced to 25 years after he fled deputies and crashed into another vehicle, killing its driver.

Robert Matagi had initially been charged with second-degree reckless homicide, fleeing an officer and hit-and-run involving death from an April 11 incident in which he crashed into a vehicle driven by Pedro Colon-Ortiz, 25, of Milwaukee. Colon-Ortiz died in the crash, authorities say.

During court proceedings in Milwaukee County, the homicide and fleeing charges were dismissed, but read into the record, and Matagi pleaded no contest to the hit-and-run involving death charge.

In an apology letter written following the crash and his arrest, officials said Matagi wrote: "I had a gun and some marijuana in the car with no license and I was scared to go to jail and be stranded in Milwaukee so I sped up."

According to a criminal complaint filed in Milwaukee County, a Milwaukee County Sheriff's Deputy was on patrol on I-43 near W. Lapham St. just after 5 p.m. on April 11 when he reported seeing a red 2013 Chrysler 200 driven by Matagi recklessly heading south.

The deputy reported trying to stop Matagi's vehicle, only to have him speed away, exiting the freeway at W. Holt Ave. The deputy reported that Matagi ran a red stoplight at S. 13th St. and W. Morgan Ave., colliding with a 2013 Scion at the intersection before colliding with two more vehicles.

According to the criminal complaint, the driver of the Scion, later identified as Colon-Ortiz, suffered severe injuries in the crash, and died in the ambulance that was dispatched to administer emergency care.

Authorities said that Matagi fled the crash scene on foot, and was taken down after a short foot pursuit. Deputies also noted that a woman traveling with Matagi also fled, but was apprehended while trying to conceal a gun and drugs at a nearby gas station, the criminal complaint stated.

When investigators downloaded information from the Airbag Control Module of the Chrysler driven by Matagi, it stated that 0.1 second prior the collision Matagi was traveling at 85 miles per hour, the accelerator pedal was at 93 percent and the engine throttle was at 99 percent of capacity. The speed limit was 30 miles per hour at the intersection.