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Woman charged in fatal Kissimmee hit-and-run bonds out of jail

KISSIMMEE, Fla. — A woman who was arrested on charges of hitting and killing a Kissimmee man has bonded out of jail, authorities said Thursday.

According to troopers, Rafael Cotto, 65, of Kissimmee was struck and killed by a car as he walked along U.S. 441 north of Carroll Street around 7:50 a.m. Sunday. Troopers said the car they believe was being driven by Giselle Marie Saez-Castellano, 27, then fled the scene.

Troopers said a surveillance camera from a nearby business recorded the incident.

"Troopers were able to locate a video of this exact crash," said FHP Sgt. Kim Montes. "That actually gave us a better idea, it gave us a better timeline, because we really did not know how long he was there on the side of the road."

According to troopers, a damaged 2003 Kia Spectra matching the description of the car believed to have hit Cotto was reported to be at an apartment complex not far from the accident scene.

Troopers said they spoke with Castellano, the owner of the car, who said she was driving the car home from work at the time of the crash and that she dozed off, drifted off the roadway and struck a pole.

In the past two years, Castellano received three tickets for speeding. She was arrested for driving with a suspended license in January 2013, WFTV found out.

"It seems to communicate a lack of humanity if [someone] could do something like this," the victim’s brother David Cotto said.

Rafael Cotto's sister, Lisa Van Dam, told WFTV that she is impressed with how quickly troopers made an arrest in the case.

"I'm very impressed by how swiftly this case came to a conclusion – astounded," Van Dam said.

But Van Dam said she doesn't believe that Castellano thought she struck a pole.

"I don't buy her story that she thought she hit a pole. I just don't buy it, because of the damage to her car. To me it's clear and evident that Ray's body was on her car," said Van Dam.

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