Cops ID vehicle type in fatal hit-run

Suffolk County police detectives on Wednesday said they have identified the make and model of a vehicle in the hit-and-run death of a pedestrian who was struck and dragged 500 feet on Jericho Turnpike in Huntington Station on Labor Day.

Crime Stoppers of Suffolk County Inc. is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for anyone who provides information leading to an arrest in the hit-and-run case.

Investigators asked the public's help identifying the driver of the vehicle, a black Nissan Pathfinder, probably a 1998 to 2004 model, which may have been damaged when it struck the male victim in front of a 7-Eleven store on westbound Jericho Turnpike at Thorney Avenue.

The Pathfinder may have sustained lower front-end damage that may extend to the hood and windshield, Second Squad detectives said. It was last seen headed west on Jericho Turnpike at 10:36 p.m. Sept. 3.

"The victim, who was walking in the westbound lane of Jericho Turnpike, was dragged 500 feet before being dislodged from the vehicle in front of the Whitman Motor Lodge located at 295 East Jericho Turnpike, Huntington Station," a Wednesday crime alert said.

Police said that after the man's body became dislodged from the car in front of the motel, the driver fled.

Suffolk police ask anyone with information about the Pathfinder, or about the hit-and-run accident, to call Crime Stoppers at 800-220-TIPS. All calls will remain confidential.