Fatal hit-and-run near Smiths Falls: OPP offering $50K, billboard to lead into the suspect involved on Hwy 15

A $50,000 award is being offered by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) for information to identify the driver of a vehicle involved with a fatal hit-and-run on Highway 15 near Smiths Falls last fall.

A new billboard showing a photo of the victim -- Steven Tate, 34, of Montague Township – has also been installed near the scene on the highway to remind drivers who might have information to come forward.

OPP spokesperson Bill Dickson told CTV News Ottawa police are asking anyone with information to step in, noting that any small detail can help.

"The billboard is up there on the highway," Dickson said. "(We’ll offer) whatever it takes to get that information."

Tate's body was found on Nov. 8, 2023, on the highway, after he went missing on Nov. 3.

Earlier this year, police released video of a vehicle investigators believe to be involved in the incident.

"A dark coloured hatchback or sedan, believed to be a Mazda, is believed to have been involved. It would have had damage to the front passenger side," the OPP said in a news release on Thursday.

"Members of the Lanark County OPP Crime Unit, under the direction of the OPP Criminal Investigation Branch, continue to investigate with the assistance of OPP Collision Reconstructionist and the Technical Collision Investigation team, in conjunction with the Office of the Chief Coroner and Ontario Forensic Pathology Service."

Anyone with information is asked to call police at 1-888-310-1122, or call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 to remain anonymous.

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