UPDATE: Jan 27, 4:14 p.m. - Court records indicate that 54-year-old Paul Nogami, of Hatfield, has died. The charges against him mentioned below have been subsequently withdrawn.
Paul Nogami, 54, has been charged with one felony count of accidents involving death or personal injury, along with summary counts of failure to stop and render aid, improper turn and failure to notify police of an accident involving injury or death, in connection with the incident on Sept. 6, 2021.
Police were dispatched to the scene at 10:53 a.m. for a report of a struck pedestrian. Arriving officers located a seriously injured male victim lying in a pool of blood approximately 91 feet from the crosswalk, and the striking vehicle had fled the scene, according to the criminal complaint.
Approximately 21 minutes after the initial dispatch, Nogami arrived at the scene and told police that he was negotiating a right turn from West Broad Street onto South Main Street when he felt like he “hit a pothole,” police said. Nogami said he heard sirens while at Giant and returned to the scene to make sure he had not struck something other than a pothole, according to the complaint.
Police noted that Giant was a four-minute ride from the scene, however it took Nogami 21 minutes to return. An inspection of Nogami’s Chevrolet S10 pickup truck revealed a cracked passenger-side headlight, a dust-swipe from the passenger-side front-mounted deflector and a tan clothing thread attached to the rear passenger-side leaf spring bushing, which matched the shorts the victim was wearing, police said.
A witness to the crash told police that the victim had taken two steps into the crosswalk, at which point he was struck by Nogami’s vehicle, the report states. The victim was struck on his left side and hit the hood of the vehicle, then hit the ground and was dragged for approximately 100 feet before being run over by the rear passenger side tire, police said.
Investigators reviewed the victim’s medical records in December 2021, at which point they learned he had suffered a dislocated right shoulder, multiple facial fractures, a mandible fracture and multiple abrasions as a result of being struck by the vehicle. The victim was hospitalized for nearly a week following the incident, police said.
Court records show that charges were filed against Nogami on Dec. 23, 2021. His first court appearance is a preliminary hearing on March 23 at 1 p.m. in front of District Judge Ed Levine.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause.
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