On Sunday night, Santa Barbara County Sheriff Office’s deputies arrested 20-year-old Goleta resident Nicholas Baker at his residence in Isla Vista after he allegedly hit a cyclist with his car on Calle Real earlier that night, killing the cyclist. The suspect reportedly left the scene without assisting the victim or calling for help. According to a press release from the Sheriff’s Office, the victim was declared dead before the arrival of deputies.
Deputies tracked the vehicle of the suspect that same night to the 900 block of Camino del Sur in Isla Vista, around a half an hour after deputies and County Fire and American Medical Response responded to the report of the hit-and-run. Baker was arrested on charges of hit-and-run causing injury or death, involuntary vehicular manslaughter, and driving under the influence causing injury. All three charges are felonies, and Baker is being held in the county jail with bail set at $1,000,000.