The Los Angeles Police Department is continuing the search for the driver who struck and injured a 61-year-old woman in downtown Los Angeles on Feb. 28, and new video footage shows the vehicle that struck the victim and another car whose driver was a witness.
The victim, Sandra Martin, was walking with her dog, a brown long-hair Chihuahua-terrier mix named Little Man, shortly before 3 a.m. when she was struck by a dark-colored four-door Hyundai Genesis that was traveling in reverse in the 100 block of East Fourth Street, police said.
The driver allegedly struck Martin with his car, got out to remove her from under his vehicle, then fled the scene, telling her “I sure am” when she asked if he was leaving.
The driver was described by police as being a Black man about 25 to 30 years old with a thin build and who weighs between 170 and 190 pounds.
While police are still searching for the driver of the Genesis, they are also looking for the person who was driving a newer-model Jeep Wrangler that “appeared to be in position to see when Sandra Martin was struck by the Genesis,” police said.
The LAPD released new footage of the area near the hit-and-run on Thursday.
Martin, who was treated for serious injuries but has been released from the hospital and is now recovering at home, is still looking for Little Man and is asking for the public’s help in finding him.
A post on Nextdoor showed what appeared to be Little Man — or a dog like him — but so far, the person who found the treasured pup and service dog has so far refused to return him.
The man told detectives he was worried the dog’s owner was neglectful.
“My dog is my heart, he is my heart,” Martin said. “And that person that didn’t want to give him back because I’m a bad mother, well watch how Little Man gets when he sees me. … I want my dog back, and I know he wants me.”