Found in the Press Enterprise and written by Alicia Robinson
Hoping to generate new leads, Riverside police plan to offer a $10,000 reward for information on the driver who struck and killed bicyclist D’Andre Sutherland in August.
Sutherland, 27, of Riverside, was riding his bike north on Magnolia Avenue near Riverside City College on Aug. 10, 2014, when an SUV struck him from behind but did not stop and continued driving north, according to police.
Witnesses thought the car was pale silver or beige, but the police investigation determined it may have been light blue and likely had damage to the front bumper, windshield and hood.
Sutherland was taken to Riverside Community Hospital, but he never recovered. He was removed from life support two days after being hit by the SUV.
Police Chief Sergio Diaz said detectives have pursued all available leads and have made little progress. A reward could spur other witnesses or people with information on the case to come forward, he said.
The City Council will vote Tuesday on whether to offer the reward for information that helps police identify and catch whoever is responsible for Sutherland’s death. The city had made such offers only rarely to help solve cases, and the three most recent examples were in shooting deaths.
Auto-related fatalities, both with bicyclists and pedestrians, are on the rise in Riverside and elsewhere in Riverside County, police Lt. Mark Rossi said. After no fatal crashes involving both bikes and cars in 2012 or 2013, there have been four this year, city statistics show.
“I don’t think we can pinpoint one particular cause” of the increase, Rossi said.
Anyone with information on the Sutherland crash should contact Detective Felix Soria at 951-826-8720 orFSoria@riversideca.gov.
Tips may also may be submitted to the Riverside police investigations tip line at 951-353-7261 or RPDTips
@riversideca.gov.