The unidentified man's body was found around noon on Sunday in front of a home on Road 27 near Ellis Street in Madera County, just north of Madera.
Road 27 is back open now. The CHP says a side mirror belonging to the car that struck the man was found on the scene. They hope the mirror or even eyewitnesses can help investigators track down the driver who struck and killed the man here sometime last night or this morning.
CHP and Madera County investigators spent hours examining the body of a man found in front of several Madera County homes. "At this time we don't have any information on the individual or the person that was found deceased," said Pablo Reyna with the California Highway Patrol.
Detectives are also looking to near-by businesses for any surveillance cameras that may hold pictures of the collision. The CHP says it's likely the man was walking down the street when he was struck. "We don't know for sure which way he was walking, or which direction the vehicle might have been traveling."
The man's shoes were found several dozen feet away from his body. One was still in the street, the other was found in the tall grass on the other side of a fence.
"I don't understand how somebody could do a hit and run. Somebody knows something and to leave them there to die. I don't know, it's a really sad thing," said Keri Barnard of Madera.
Barnard lives in a near by apartment complex. She was surprised Sunday morning when she found the street closed off by investigators. "It's somebody's family members, it's just a sad thing."
Detectives have taken finger prints from the body as they work to identify the man. They also found the right side mirror from the car that struck him. They hope the mirror will help them track down the driver. "We're going to do an investigation and try to determine the type of vehicle that hit this person as well as determine the time frame the collision occurred."
The mirror you just saw is made of black plastic, so investigators are not even sure what color vehicle struck and killed the man.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Madera area CHP office.
