Suspected driver charged with hit-and-run and killing former police officer

OCONTO, Wis. (WBAY) – A Gillett man is charged in Oconto County in a hit-and-run that killed a former police officer.

The Oconto County District Attorney charged Obilio Tomas Sargento Roblero with hit-and-run resulting in death, a Class D felony punishable by a maximum of 25 years in prison.

Sargento was arrested in Arkansas and is awaiting extradition to Wisconsin.

Depending on the results of the investigation, the public prosecutor could file further charges.

As we reported on MondayThe victim, Tom Roberts, was riding his ATV Friday evening when he stopped to help a UTV operator who was having trouble. Witnesses said Roberts offered to tow the UTV and was fastening a harness and getting back on his ATV when a car hit him.

According to the criminal complaint, investigators used drones and K9 teams to search a wooded area, a corn field and surrounding buildings for several hours. A can of beer and a cell phone were found in the car.

The complaint names several people who had contact with Sargento while authorities were searching for him, and some initially lied to investigators.

Sargento's wife said he told her he had been in an accident, but police didn't believe him. He said he swerved to avoid a deer coming out of the woods and that's when he saw two unlit UTVs on the side of the road and hit one of them. He panicked, ran into the forest and finally went home.

His wife said they contacted a cousin who lives in Mexico for help getting Sargento, who has lived in Wisconsin for eight years, out of the country. Sargento eventually received the phone number of a person who specializes in passenger transportation in the United States.

Authorities have not said how they located Sargento in Arkansas, but they were contacted Monday by officials there who provided a photo to confirm his identity.

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