A 29-year-old Philadelphia man will face second- and fourth-degree charges in a hit-and-run that claimed the life of Tabreia Ewing as she tried to cross Route 70 in Cherry Hill. He surrendered to police Friday.
By Matt Skoufalos | November 30, 2021
Cherry Hill Police badge. Credit: Cherry Hill Police.
(UPDATE: Dec. 3, 2021 – 3:43 p.m.) – A Philadelphia man charged in the hit-and-run death of a Camden City woman in Cherry Hill on Thanksgiving evening has surrendered himself to police.
Twenty-nine-year-old Michael R. Rodgers, Jr. faces second-degree charges of knowingly leaving the scene of a fatal accident and fourth-degree charges of obstructing the administration of law.
Rodgers was identified as a possible suspect in the case on Tuesday after a multi-agency investigation, Cherry Hill Police said. Authorities charged him Thursday, and he turned himself in Friday.
Rodgers has been remanded to the Camden County Jail pending a pre-trial hearing in the case.
He is alleged to have struck and killed 29-year-old Tabreia Ewing of Camden City shortly after 7 p.m. November 25, as she crossed the westbound lane of Route 70 near the Garden State Park shopping plaza on foot.
Ewing’s body wasn’t discovered until Friday morning, when a New Jersey Department of Transportation worker reported it, police said.
Cherry Hill Police Lt. John Ostermueller said Ewing’s remains were found across from the bus stop on Route 70 between Haddonfield Road and Center Avenue. There is no pedestrian crosswalk at that location.
“Crossing in that section of the roadway is prohibited, regardless of the purpose,” Ostermueller said. “It’s also an unfortunate tragedy.”
Knowingly leaving the scene of an accident that causes serious injury or death is a third-degree crime punishable by fines of $2,500 to $5,000, 180 days in jail, and a one-year driver license suspension.
Cherry Hill Police credited the Delaware River Port Authority Police, Philadelphia Police Department, Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, and New Jersey Department of Transportation with assisting in the case.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Cherry Hill Det. Kristina Grimaldi (856-432-8835) or Officer Elizabeth Gibbs (856-432-8860).
Anonymous tips may be sent to tips@cherryhillpolice.com, via this web form, or by texting TIP CHERRYHILLPD followed by your message to 888777.
All persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. An arrest is not a conviction.
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