A Florida man has been charged in Porter Superior Court with a felony count of operating while intoxicated causing death for a September hit and run which killed a Porter man on a bicycle, according to court documents.
Erik J. Vigorito, 54, of Port St. Lucie, also is charged with three misdemeanors related to driving while intoxicated. He had enough THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, in his system to indicate “moderate marijuana use,” according to a toxicology report, charging documents state.
Salvador Mújica III, 64, died at a nearby hospital after being struck by Vigorito’s vehicle, according to the charges.
Chesterton Police were called around 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 2 for a car/bicycle crash at Porter Avenue and Dickinson Road. Police found Vigorito on Sawgrass Drive with a “severely damaged mid-size SUV,” according to the charges.
Vigorito, who was bleeding, told police he was “a little lightheaded” on Indiana 49 and turned right onto Porter Avenue to assess his situation, according to the charges, and “the next thing he knew, his car was at rest in the grass” where he was speaking with officers.
Police said Vigorito’s vehicle, a blue Mazda, struck Mújica’s bicycle on Porter Avenue before “continuing into a field north of Porter Avenue, through a tree line before coming to rest in the lawn at the corner of Cherry Hills Drive and Colonial Drive.”
Dashcam video from Vigorito’s vehicle appeared to show that he “lost consciousness while driving, leading to a loss of vehicle control,” resulting in the collision with Mújica’s bicycle and Mújica’s death from his injuries, charges state.
A warrant was issued for Vigorito’s arrest on Jan. 3, the day after charges were filed, according to online records. Bond has been set at $15,000 surety.
Mújica, according to his obituary, was born and raised in Mexico, where he earned his medical degree. He and his wife Lupe moved to the United States, where he worked as a safety supervisor. His obituary describes him as a “man whose heart was as large as his smile.”