Arrest made in downtown Dover hit-and-run case

Bruce Bernier (Dover Police photo)

DOVER - A Newmarket man has been arrested in a hit-and-run incident earlier this month that injured a Dover man.

Bruce Bernier, 61, of 189 New Road, Newmarket, turned himself in to Dover Police around 3:15 p.m. on Friday after learning there was a warrant out for his arrest.

Bernier was charged with felony level conduct after an accident in connection with the accident, which occurred in a Central Avenue crosswalk near TD Bank on April 2.

Immediately after the crash the southbound vehicle turned west onto Washington Street.

The pedestrian who was struck, 37-year-old Shane McCall of Dover, was hospitalized at Wentworth Douglass with non-life threatening injuries.

Dover Police on Friday sent out a press release detailing how the investigation unfolded, which began with their obtaining numerous surveillance recordings from downtown businesses.

Using these videos, detectives were able to track the path of the suspect vehicle, a four door black sedan, as it traveled through Dover before and after it struck McCall in the area of 378 Central Ave.

Detectives were able to identify the vehicle as an older model Toyota Corolla. Detectives then contacted numerous auto repair shops in Dover and the surrounding community in hopes of generating more information.

Also, as a result of media coverage of the incident, the Dover Police Department received numerous tips from the public. Ultimately detectives were able to identify the vehicle involved as a 2007 Toyota Corolla, and through further investigation, were able to identify Bernier as the driver who stuck McCall.

Bernier was released after booking on $5,000 personal recognizance bail and is scheduled for arraignment in Strafford County Superior Court on May 3. The charge is punishable by up to seven years in prison.

Dover Police also took the opportunity to thank the many businesses in Dover and the surrounding communities that provided assistance to the investigation, both by providing surveillance footage and by providing information to help identify the suspect vehicle.