New Details Emerge on Hit-and-Run Suspect

New details have emerged in the hit-and-run death of an Old Bethpage man and his dog early Thursday.

Matthew Johnstone, 37, an X-ray specialist at Huntington Hospital, surrendered to police about an hour after running down Robert Michels and his dog, Sparky on Round Swamp Road, authorities said.

The North Massapequa suspect returned in his battered pick-up truck along with his future father-in-law, a retired New York City detective, News 12 reported.

Michels, 42, and his husky/lab mix were walking along Round Swamp Road in Old Bethpage at around midnight Thursday when they were fatally struck. Michels was pronounced dead at a local hospital. The dog died at the scene.

Johnstone's lawyer told a judge that the suspect was returning from his shift as an X-ray specialist at Huntington Hospital at the time. The lawyer said Johnstone realized he had hit "something."

It remains unclear why he didn't stop. In a News 12 interview, the lawyer, who was not identified, said Johnstone was "obviously not intoxicated, not impaired," and returned to the scene a short time after the incident.

Johnstone is charged with leaving the scene of an accident and was being held on $20,000 bond, News 12 reported.