Man sent to jail for hit-and-run that killed Marine Veteran in Detroit

DETROIT – A judge found Gilberto Ortiz, 22, guilty and sent him directly to jail for his part in a deadly hit-and-run that took the life of a veteran on Veterans Day 2016 in downtown Detroit.

Judge Mariam Saad Bazzi found Ortiz guilty of tampering with evidence and is expected to be sentenced Oct. 11, he faces ten years in prison.

Marine Maurice Mims was walking to meet friends for dinner on Randolph Street when a driver ran a red light, swerved to miss another car and crashed into Mims, killing him.

Ortiz was arrested after taking his mother's car to have the windshield replaced. The windshield had Mims' DNA embedded in it.

READ: Police reveal major break in 2016 cold case for Marine killed in Detroit hit-and-run

A lawyer for Ortiz said he did not think Ortiz would be sent to jail immediately.

His family and co-workers testified that Ortiz said he hit a sign at work. Co-workers told the court they saw Ortiz driving the suspect car and no sign was hit.