BELFAST — Belfast police were able to make an arrest Friday night in a hit-and-run bike-car accident that sent a Belfast city councilor to the hospital with injuries that included a nearly severed ear.

City Councilor Eric Sanders was just feet from his home on Alto Street, off Belmont Avenue/Main Street and Lincolnville Avenue, when he was hit from behind by a car around 2 p.m. Friday. Belfast Police Chief Mike McFadden said the car drove off without stopping, but officers caught a break when they were able to collect broken car parts and match them to a suspect's vehicle later on Friday evening.

McFadden said Sanders was just finishing a 20-mile bike ride and was on Main Street when the accident occurred.

A couple of pedestrians, quite a ways back from the scene, toward Quirk Auto, said they saw two cars, a red one and white one, pass them and head toward a bicyclist.

"They said they saw a cloud of dust and didn't really know which car caused the cloud. Once they got up to the scene, they realized the cloud of dust was the person on the bike, who got hit," said McFadden. "They were not sure which one hit him, but they knew it was one of the two colors, basically."

As a result of the crash, Sanders was knocked unconscious and sustained bumps, bruises and a sprained ankle. He also sustained a serious injury to his ear, which was nearly torn off and required 50 stitches to repair.

Officer Brian Lunt was the lead investigating officer, and police collected some shards of glass and bits and pieces of plastic from the scene. Whatever kind of car was involved, McFadden said they determined it had black plastic side view mirrors and the passenger side mirror was broken.

Lunt put information about the accident and the vehicle out to all law enforcement in the county, and police started looking for the car.

At around 6 p.m., Belfast police were called to a complaint of a domestic situation, with people arguing on Patterson Hill Road. Lunt responded with Officer Dan Fitzpatrick and when they got there, McFadden said they noticed a red vehicle in the driveway that had damage to the side view mirror.

"They looked a little closer and realized the damage was exactly the same, as they could piece it back together with the plastic pieces they knew they had back at the office," said McFadden. "And along with the damage to the mirror, there were bicycle tire tracks on the front fender of the car."

After dealing with the domestic situation, Lunt and Fitzpatrick asked questions about the car and were told that it had been involved in an accident. A person claiming to be a passenger at the time of the accident said they remembered seeing a bike fall down on the passenger side, according to McFadden.

Eventually, the officers arrested Derri Lucas, 36, of Knox, and charged her with leaving the scene of a personal injury accident, operating after suspension and refusing to submit to arrest. McFadden said Lucas was "extremely intoxicated" and was combative with the officers when they took her into custody. They learned Lucas was on bail conditions, and she was also charged with violating conditions of release, as well as possession of marijuana.

"It has not been determined that the incident involving Mr. Sanders four hours earlier was alcohol-related," said McFadden.

The car Lucas was allegedly driving was impounded, and McFadden said it will be examined further as part of the ongoing investigation.

Lucas remains in Waldo County Jail in Belfast Saturday morning with no bail allowed for the VCR charge. Bail on the other charges was set at $500.

Sanders was released from the hospital Friday night and is recuperating at home.

Related story:

• Belfast city councilor released from hospital after hit-and-run

Editorial Director Holly S. Edwards can be reached by email at hollyedwards@penbaypilot.com or by calling 207-706-6655.