TROY (Rickey Stokes News)
A Mississippi man has been charged in connection with a pedestrian hit-and-run that claimed the life of a Troy woman, according to the Troy Police Department.
Officers were dispatched to the 100 block of U.S. 231 South on Sunday, December 21, where they located a woman in the roadway who had been struck by a vehicle. Authorities said the victim sustained injuries consistent with being hit by a vehicle.
The woman was identified as Annie Laura Cooper, 59, of Troy. She was pronounced dead at the scene. The investigation was turned over to the Troy Police Department’s Traffic Homicide Unit.
During the course of the investigation, officers traveled to Lucedale, Mississippi, on Saturday, December 27, where a search warrant was executed at a residence. Police said the vehicle believed to be involved in the crash was located, and the suspected driver was identified.
An arrest warrant was subsequently issued for Malvin Geovany Villalbos-Bonilla, 45, of Lucedale, Mississippi. He is charged with felony leaving the scene of an accident involving death.
Authorities said Villalbos-Bonilla and the vehicle were transported back to Troy. He was processed at the Troy City Jail and later transferred to the Pike County Jail, where he remains held on a $250,000 bond.
Troy police stated that investigators determined Villalbos-Bonilla is from Honduras and is believed to be in the country illegally, having previously been deported. Officials said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been notified of the charge.
The Troy Police Department thanked the Lucedale Police Department and the Pike County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance. The investigation remains ongoing.
