Chicago man says he's wasn't driving in fatal hit-and-run
The owner of a Porsche that ran down two pedestrians in Fort Lauderdale says he was not the driver of the car at the time of the accident.
Ryan LeVin, 34 of Chicago, tol the Sun Sentinel that he wasn't driving the car when it struck and killed two pedestrians along State Road A1A on Wednesday.
LeVin refused to comment further and referred questions to his Keith Seltzer. Seltzer had no statement to make on LeVin's behalf and declined to say whether he's been retained to represent LeVin, who comes from a wealthy Chicago area family.
LeVin has not been named as a suspect in the hit-and-run, nor has anyone else. Craig Elford, 39 and Lenneth Watkinson, 48, both from England, were walking to their beachfront hotel when they were struck and killed.
Just before the two businessmen were struck, wintessess had called 911 to report that a Porsche appeared to be racing with another light colored sports car down Seabreeze Blvd.
According to police, the Porsche jumped the curb hitting both men from behind.
Police located LeVin's damaged Porsche 911 Turbo about an hour later on the northbound ramp of I-595 to I-95. The car was abandoned.
Fort Lauderdale Police issued a news release on Wednesday revealing that LeVin was the registered owner of the Porsche.
In November 2007, LeVin was sentenced to 30 month's probation after leading Chicago police in a high-speed chase in a 2001 Porsche Targa.
Police estimated that LeVin's car reached speeds up to 100mph during the chase which occurred on July 31, 2006. According to police reports, LeVin hit several cars and injured a police officer and two other motorists.
When Levin's car was stopped by police, they found cocaine in the car. He was charged with seven felonies and pleaded guilty to one--aggravated fleeing.
Part of the plea agreement required LeVin to enter into a substance abuse program
According to court records LeVin was allowed to travel to Florida to care for properties that his parent's owned in a Fort Lauderdale beachfront high-rise.
Court documents also revealed that LeVin was employed as vice president for national sales for Jewels by Park Lane. It is a company that was owned by his parents.
According to Florida's department of motor vehicles, LeVin's Florida driver's license had expired in 2007. According to the Illinois Secretary of State's Office, LeVin's Illinois license was no longer valid. It was unknown whether LeVin had a driver's license from another state.
The two men killed in the accident worked for a pharmaceutical company in Banbury, a town a few hours northwest of London. According to co-worker Diana MInshaw, the two left England on Feb. 11, for a six day trip to the U.S. "They traveled, but not as far as America before," said Minshaw. The two were in Florida hoping to hire employees. "They were confident that they would find somebody."
Elford was married with two young children. Watkinson was also married with a 3-year-old son and two teenage children from a previous relationshiop.
Minshaw said she saw Elford's wife Claire on Tuesday.
According to Minshaw, Elford's wife hasn't come to terms with what has happened.
