Watch CBS News

FHP Says Teen Cyclist Killed Darted In Front Of Trooper's Car

Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter

MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- A teenage bicyclist, struck and killed by a Florida Highway Patrol cruiser Friday night, darted into the Trooper's path, according to FHP officials.

According to Lt. Alex Camacho, Trooper Aliek Sierra, a 9-year veteran, was on patrol when Angel Lopez, riding his Huffy bicycle and trying to cross Killian Parkway, cut in front of the cruiser near Southwest 108 Avenue.

Security video from a nearby business makes it appear Lopez had gotten off a Metrobus with his bike, and had begun to ride south across Killian Parkway.

One car narrowly misses hitting him, but the trooper's patrol car ran into him, its front end was damaged and the windshield was smashed in.

Lopez died on the scene, apparently killed instantly.

Sierra was not hurt.

Lopez was a student at Miami Killian Senior High School and was a member of the ROTC.  Family members say Lopez wanted to follow his father's lead with a career in the military.

"I can't express my grief," Lopez's aunt, Genoveva de Armas told CBS4 News Monday.  "This has come as such a shock to us.  He wasn't a street kid, he was a very good boy."

CBS4 News spoke to family friend, Aida Camelo.

"I feel very very bad, very sad. He is very, very nice. He's too sweet," she said.

The Lopez family has set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for his funeral.

The boy's father, Norberto, wrote on the GoFundMe page, "My precious boy Angel passed away too soon.  He is my heart, my twin, my son and best friend."

The page listed a goal of $2,500.  By mid-afternoon Monday, it had raised more than $7,500.

Lopez was trying to cross the busy roadway in the middle of the block, with no crosswalk and no traffic light, just East of the Miami Dade College Kendall campus.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.