Lauderhill

Elusive One-Woman Crime Spree Includes Deadly Hit-and-Run in Lauderhill: Police

Rebecca Strowbridge, 37, is facing 19 charges including a fatal hit-and-run

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A 37-year-old woman who is already accused of stealing a car is facing new charges following a deadly hit-and-run in Lauderhill.

Ira Joe Anderson, 71, was struck by a black Dodge Ram pickup truck while walking across the 1200 block of Northwest 31st Avenue about 10:40 p.m. June 20.

Acting on a tip, Lauderhill Police determined Rebecca Strowbridge was driving the truck with two passengers. She moved from hotel to hotel and wore different wigs to avoid arrest, police said.

Authorities are searching for a hit-and-run driver who was caught on camera fatally hitting a man before fleeing the scene in Lauderhill.

According to the latest arrest report, Strowbridge and passenger Travarous Brewer got out to check on the man in the street. Then, she drove off leaving Brewer behind, so he ran off. Neither called 911.

The pedestrian was taken to Broward Health Medical Center with fractures to his back, leg, and pelvis and an injury to his liver. He died of his injuries June 29, the report stated.

As it happens, the Dodge Ram was involved in another hit-and-run crash about 3:15 a.m. June 23 when the driver lost control and struck an apartment building in the 4700 block of Northwest 24 Court in Lauderdale Lakes. The driver and passenger got out and fled in a BMW, police said.

The truck turned up in a Hollywood auto repair dealership Sept. 20 with front-end damage. It was also missing a Dodge emblem found at the scene of the pedestrian hit-and-run in Lauderhill, investigators said.

Strowbridge was arrested about 4 a.m. Sept. 4 after a license plate reader at a Sawgrass Expressway exit alerted police to the car that was reported stolen in Fort Lauderdale two days earlier, according to the arrest report.

Officers found the car parked at a 7-Eleven at 5615 N. University Drive and took Strowbridge into custody, police said.

The Pompano Beach woman refused to give her name and started kicking the windows of the patrol car she was in on the way to the police station, the report stated.

BSO
Rebecca Strowbridge

She had five outstanding arrest warrants against her including grand theft auto and probation violations, records show.

Police said they also charged her with drug possession when they found nearly four grams of cocaine in her pocket.

During questioning about the deadly hit-and-run, police said Strowbridge admitted to everything and claimed she fled because she didn’t have a valid driver’s license.

The new charges were added Friday.

Strowbridge remains in the Broward County Jail without bond on 19 charges that include leaving the scene of a deadly crash, auto theft, evidence tampering, and driving with a suspended license, records show.

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