CLEARWATER, Fla. – Clearwater police investigators arrested a local woman Friday morning in connection with a fatal hit-and-run that claimed the life of a pedestrian earlier this month.
Dawn Dunkle, 49, faces charges of leaving the scene of a crash involving death and possession of a controlled substance following a multi-day investigation into the February 4 incident.
The crash occurred around 9:30 p.m. in the 1400 block of Gulf-to-Bay Boulevard. According to authorities, 60-year-old Elbert Gilbert was using a marked crosswalk when he was struck by a westbound vehicle. The driver did not stop to help or call emergency services, and Gilbert later died from his injuries at Largo Medical Center.
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Detectives initially focused their search on a red Ford Mustang from the early 2020s after finding vehicle fragments at the scene. They recovered the car, a 2024 model, the following afternoon. Police report the Mustang had damage consistent with a pedestrian strike.
While Dunkle allegedly told acquaintances she believed she had hit a speed bump or a box, investigators say the evidence tied the vehicle directly to the fatal collision with Gilbert.
Dunkle was taken into custody and booked into the Pinellas County Jail.
The arrest brings a close to a search that began when Clearwater Fire & Rescue first responded to the scene and treated Gilbert as a trauma alert. Police had spent several days appealing to the public for information regarding the driver’s whereabouts and actions on the night of the crash.
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