A hit-and-run suspect remains behind bars, one year after his arrest in a crash which left an injured Villager bicyclist by the side of the road.
William Joseph Croop Jr., 60, of Orange Springs, has been held since Nov. 8, 2020 at the Sumter County Detention Center following his arrest by the Florida Highway Patrol on a felony charge of hit and run.
Croop is charged with being at the wheel of a silver Jaguar on the morning of Nov. 3 when the vehicle struck 61-year-old Ken Nevers of the Village of Fenney. He had been bicycling in the multi-modal lane on Hillsborough Trail near the Manatee Recreation Center when he suffered severe head trauma including memory loss, bruised lungs, a broken rib and a fractured shoulder along with lacerations on his face and head.
Croop was arrested after a tip led to 3089 Glenwood Place in the Village of Glenbrook. A woman who lives there and has a history of drug arrests provided additional information which led to Croop’s apprehension, six days after the bicyclist had been struck.
Croop, who has a long criminal history, has pleaded not guilty in the case.
His next court date is Nov. 23.
