A suspect who is in the country illegally from Mexico fled from a hit-and-run crash in Winter Haven yesterday but was quickly apprehended by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

On Tuesday, February 10, 2026, around 4:40 p.m., the victim flagged down two deputies on Rifle Range Road and told them that she had just been rear-ended by a burgundy Nissan Frontier truck. She had also called 911 before seeing the deputies in the area.

She told the deputies that the man who hit her got out of the truck and pleaded with her not to call law enforcement. His female passenger also asked her not to contact law enforcement. The victim told them both that she was calling 911, at which point they both got back into the truck and fled the scene.

The victim gave the deputies the vehicle tag number, and deputies drove to the registered address on Ridgeview East in Winter Haven, where they spotted the truck parked in the back yard under a tarp. They made contact at the front door with 39-year-old Jose Obregon Salgado, who immediately tried to retreat back into the home. He was taken into custody and positively identified by the victim.

Salgado is charged with: 
Tampering with evidence (F2)
Resisting arrest (F3)
Leaving the scene of a crash (M1)
No valid driver's license (M1)

Each of these charges is enhanced by one degree due to the suspect's illegal status and an ICE detainer has been placed on him in the Polk County Jail.

Salgado was also arrested in 2024 for no valid driver's license.

"If this suspect had just remained at the scene, he would have been arrested and charged with no valid DL, and given a traffic citation for the crash. Now he's facing two felonies and other serious charges because he chose to run, attempted to hide the evidence, and resisted law enforcement." - Grady Judd, Sheriff