Woman charged after boy hit by car in Charleroi

Police said she initially left the scene of the accident before returning.

A Chicago woman is accused of speeding and hitting a young boy with her vehicle in Charleroi before fleeing the scene, police said.

Charleroi Regional Police charged Yorgelis A. Matos Bravo, 29, with aggravated assault – victim less than 13 and the defendant 18 or older, recklessly endangering another person, accident involving damage to a vehicle or property, disorderly conduct, reckless driving, careless driving and speeding following the incident Sunday afternoon.

Police said the boy was crossing Third Street and Fallowfield Avenue when a Red 2016 Chevrolet Cruze was speeding southbound on Fallowfield Avenue. The car struck him and sped away.

Another juvenile on the scene took down the car’s Indiana license plate number, and surveillance footage showed the same car, according to the criminal complaint filed Monday at the office of Magisterial District Judge Eric Porter.

While checking for more witnesses and security cameras, police said Bravo’s brother came to the scene to let them know his sister was coming back, the complaint states.

When Yorgelis Bravo returned to the scene, she admitted to hitting the juvenile, but due to the “shock and being nervous,” she fled the scene. She contacted her brothers, and they convinced her to go back, the complaint states.

Hand prints and a dent on the hood of the vehicle were found, according to police. The boy suffered injuries to his right arm and head, and was transported to Penn Highlands Mon Valley Hospital and then to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

Charleroi Fire Department and Rostraver West Newton EMS also responded to the scene.

Bravo was arraigned at 8:45 a.m. Monday. After being arrested, she was taken to Penn Highlands Mon Valley Hospital to be checked for a possible head injury and then was transported to jail.

Bravo is being held in Washington County Correctional Facility unable to post a $25,000 bail. A preliminary hearing before Porter is scheduled for 11 a.m. Sept. 3.