A man was arrested Friday, months after police say he in southeast Erie and then drove away. Investigators found about 140 empty alcohol shooters in the man’s truck, according to an arrest affidavit.
Seth Kirkegaard, 32, was charged with one count of leaving the scene of an accident involving death, one count of careless driving resulting in serious bodily injury or death and one count of driving without insurance, according to online court records.
As part of a nearly five-month investigation, police used surveillance footage from nearby businesses to pinpoint Kirkegaard’s truck as the last vehicle to pass through the area — east of Mountain View Boulevard and north of Village Vista Drive — where another driver found the child around 4:40 p.m. Feb. 15.
When police interviewed Kirkegaard the following day, he told them he had driven to Circle K, then to a nearby Taco Bell, and that he hadn’t seen anything in the road and didn’t remember hitting anything.
Police later discovered that Kirkegaard had not gone to Circle K, but instead to a liquor store, where he bought alcohol shooters. About 140 empty alcohol shooters were found in his truck after police seized the vehicle Feb. 16, according to the affidavit.
A DNA analyst concluded that the DNA collected from the front passenger side bumper of Kirkegaard’s truck matched the toddler’s, according to the affidavit.
A former partner of Kirkegaard told police in April that Kirkegaard had told her he was being investigated for hitting a child and that he said “all evidence points to me, but I didn’t do it,” according to an arrest affidavit. The woman told police Kirkegaard had a history of alcohol abuse and drinking while driving.
Investigators determined that “a reasonable driver would likely have perceived that the vehicle struck or ran over something substantial,” according to the affidavit.
Kirkegaard is being held in custody at the Weld County Jail on $50,000 bail, court records show. Kirkegaard did not turn himself in but knew he would be arrested, according to Erie police spokesperson Amber Luttrell.
