Central Islip mom pleads not guilty in fatal hit-and-run

A Central Islip mother accused of running down a man and leaving him to die has pleaded not guilty.
Police say Vierka Batista-Coronado hit Jose Martinez, 44, around 4:30 a.m. Sunday while he was crossing Suffolk Avenue near Applegate Drive. Martinez died following the incident.
Batista-Coronado, a 33-year-old mother of two, pleaded not guilty, but prosecutors say she admitted to hitting Martinez.
Prosecutors say a cab driver witnessed the crash and followed Batista-Coronado. They say the driver told her to go back to the scene, and Batista-Coronado said she would but never did.
The owner of a nearby hair salon says his security cameras captured the crash and that he turned the footage over to police.
Batista-Coronado was being held on $75,000 bail or $150,000 bond.
Suffolk police ask any other witnesses to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.