A driver, who was allegedly impaired by heroin, hit and killed a man on a bicycle near Mesa, according to court records.
The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office said that 39-year-old Michael David Mullins was driving a red Mazda minivan in the eastbound lanes of University near 105th Place when he drove up on a curb, hit a mailbox then the bicyclist on the evening of Nov. 22 around 7:30 p.m.
The bicyclist, identified as Eric I. Gilbert, was taken to a hospital but died about an hour later.
MCSO said that the van was found abandoned about a half-mile away. When deputies contacted the van's owner, he told them that he lent the vehicle to Mullins.
Mullins was located and arrested on unrelated charges two days after the crash. He told MCSO that he was not aware that he hit a person and that he thought he only hit the mailbox. He admitted being under the influence of heroin at the time of the crash, deputies said.
Mullins told deputies that he fled because he has outstanding charges from other police agencies. He has been charged with leaving the scene of a fatal injury accident.
