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Fornice Cary Boatner III, 33, of Cleveland, Texas, was sentenced on Monday, Nov. 13, for knowingly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident resulting in the May 2022 death of 31-year-old Felipe Dos Santos last year in Woodbridge, according to Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone.
Dos Santos, of Elizabeth was walking along the Parkway when he was struck by Boatner in a Dodge Ram on May 25, 2022, Ciccone said. Dos Santos' body was found three days later in a ditch along the northbound side of the parkway at milepost 130.4, and pronounced dead at the scene, as previously reported by Daily Voice.
Boatner pleaded guilty in January but failed to appear at his sentencing, Ciccone said. He was apprehended again and charged with jumping bail on Nov. 2, she said.
Boatner had a warrant stemming from a similar incident in 2014, arresting authorities said, Daily Voice previously reported.
After the fatal Parkway crash, Boatner had repairs made to his vehicle to conceal the damage sustained in the hit-and-run, the prosecutor said. He was also operating the vehicle with a temporary Texas license plate when he struck Dos Santos, police said at the time.
Detectives developed Boatner as the suspect after learning he was the owner of the Dodge, and obtained information that he fled New Jersey to Cleveland, TX, NJSP said.
On May 28, 2022, members of the Houston Police Department, TX and Liberty County Sheriff’s Office located Boatner and his Dodge Ram, then arrested Boatner at his house. On June 10, 2022, Boatner was extradited back to New Jersey.
According to his obituary, Dos Santos was born in Brazil and lived in Newark before moving to Elizabeth. He is survived by his wife, Suelen Dos Santos, his children, Samantha Felipe and Nicholas Dos Santos, along with a host of family members and friends.
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