State police say that two men are facing charges in connection to the death of a special-needs teen who was struck by a car in September.
Police say Churchill Orodi, 39, and Beryl Orech, 36, provided business records and written statements claiming 14-year-old Romelo Cruze was at the Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health facility in good condition at 5:30 a.m. Investigators uncovered Cruze had been hit more almost 4.5 miles north of the facility before 5:30 a.m.
State police say Cruze was walking on State Route 9 near County Route 8 in Clermont when a truck hit him.
"Romelo’s death is tragic and heartbreaking," Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health Executive Director John Lopez said in a statement. "As an organization, our immediate focus is to support his family and loved ones and law enforcement’s investigation in every way we can."
Orodi and Orech face charges of endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person and falsifying business records --both felonies -- and a misdemeanor of making a false written statement.