Driver Wanted in Hit-Run Death of Gas Station Manager on Long Island Turns Himself In: Police

The man suspected of mowing down and killing a gas station manager on Long Island in his attempt to get away after stealing $22 worth of gas on Monday morning turned himself in, police announced Friday.

Joshua E. Roston, 33, turned himself in to Philadelphia police overnight after fleeing New York following the deadly incident, Nassau County police say. 

Nassau County police had been looking for Roston of Baldwin in the hit-and-run death of 59-year-old Cemal "John" Dagdeviren of Levittown earlier this week. The black GMC Suburban involved -- which already had front-end damage on it when it arrived, and had no plate or registration at the time -- had been recovered in Pennsylvania, prior to Roston's arrest.

The Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said "Roston felt the pressure" of authorities closing in on him and decided to surrender. 

"He knew he was going to get caught," Dagdeviren's friend Sandy Mislin said. "You can't do things like this, you can't. He took a good life. He took a good man."

Dagdeviren, a Turkish immigrant and father of two who had worked at Pit Stop gas station in South Hempstead for 25 years -- had just pumped $21 worth of gas into the SUV and was trying to collect payment when the driver got into the car and tried to take off.

Dagdeviren's family remains in Turkey, where his body was taken for burial. Police say they have spoken with the family who expressed relief that the suspect was in custody.

The killing of the gas station manager prompted an outcry of sadness and anger from the community that set a memorial outside the South Hempstead gas station.

Dagdeviren's co-worker Mark Polat called the suspect's surrender bittersweet, adding "it's not going to bring [Dagdeviren] back."

The incident was captured on surveillance video that was released by Nassau County police. They say after releasing the footage they received tips that helped them find Roston.

Surveillance video shows Dagevrien trying to block the driver from leaving. The driver mowed him down as he fled.

"He senselessly ran an individual over who was in front of his vehicle," Nassau police said. "He knew what he was doing when he stepped on the gas and crushed that man’s life and his family’s life."

Longtime customers said Dagdeviren was a reliable mechanic and friendly face who made their days a little better.

"This individual, for $22, ruined a family's life," said police.

Police say Rostono has been arrested four times in the past four years on accusations of shoplifting, stealing gas, and stripping autos.

Roston is awaiting extradition to Long Island. Eventually, he'll face a murder charge that carries with it a potential sentence of 25 years to life.

It is unclear if Roston retained an attorney.

The gas station reopened Friday.