Suspect arrested in hit and run

TYLER — An East Texas woman arrested for a December hit-and-run that killed a 19-year-old cyclist initially claimed she thought she had a tire blowout when the collision occurred. However, after driving past the scene and spotting police vehicles, she reportedly reflected, “I should have went back.”

According to our news partner KETK, footage obtained showed the truck Andrea Tanner was driving allegedly struck Lofton Williams, 19, of Argyle on Dec. 7 near the intersection of Wayside Drive and E. Fifth Street. At around 6:45 p.m., a loud crash can be heard off-screen after Tanner’s black truck was seen traveling the same lane as Williams. After hitting the cyclist, Tanner is seen on footage turning into a Brookshires less than a mile from the crime scene before exiting and driving to the Taco Bell next to it. There, video captures her going in and out of her truck several times and manipulating the grill area and the driver’s side light.

Tanner was taken into the Smith County Jail on Monday and charged with collision involving personal injury or death and is being held on a $250,000 bond. The Tyler Police Department said the case will now be forwarded to the Smith County District Attorney’s Office.

During questioning, Tanner claimed she had turned into the Brookshires parking lot to check her tires, but camera footage contradicted her statement as she never got out of the vehicle. When initially asked if she had considered returning to the scene, she replied no, stating that she believed it was “something minor.”

When investigators asked her if she had ever thought she hit a person, she replied that if it had happened, she did not see anyone.

The night of the hit-and-run, Tanner told officials she went back to the scene and admitted to having seen police cars in the area but did not stop because “she was ready to get home.”