Arrest Made In Jan. 29 Fatal Hit-And-Run Crash In St. Pete: FHP

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A St. Petersburg man was arrested Tuesday in connection with a January fatal hit and run, according to a Florida Highway Patrol news release.

Jackson Rylee Schemel-Lawrence, 24, was charged with leaving the scene of a crash involving death, FHP said.

On Jan. 29, around 3:30 a.m., a 23-year-old St. Petersburg man on an electric scooter tried crossing a raised concrete median dividing State Road 693 near 51st Avenue North.

He wasn’t able to make it over and fell into the path of a pick-up truck driving south, the agency said. The man was hit by the truck and died at the scene.

The truck kept driving without stopping, according to FHP.

Thanks to a tip, the truck was found at a home along 36th Avenue N., near 49th Street N., in early February.

Schemel-Lawrence’s arrest follows a months-long investigation. He was linked to the fatal crash by video and forensic evidence, FHP said.