Police Investigating Possible Hit-And-Run In McKees Rocks

MCKEES ROCKS (KDKA) -- Nikkolas Poliak, 23, recently moved to an apartment building on Vine Street in McKees Rocks with his roommate.

"Very nice young man. Very respectful," his landlord Karen Buzza said.  "On Sunday, I met with him, and his sister. His sister came with a truck and trailer on the back and he had all of his stuff. We signed his lease."

Buzza says Poliak moved close to the city to work as a personal trainer.

"I was just going to give him a call yesterday to see how things were going. I ended up going to the grocery store.  I forgot about it actually. Then I got the call last night that Nikkolas was in an accident out front," she said.

Poliak's body was found outside the apartment around 8 p.m. Saturday.  Allegheny County homicide detectives say the investigation is still its preliminary stages but that they believe the young man was the victim of a hit and run.  The medical examiner says Poliak died from blunt force injuries to the head.

Buzza believes beer cans left outside the door signify a makeshift memorial.  A neighbor who didn't want to go on camera told Buzza what she saw.

"There were some kids outside and then all of a sudden there weren't any kids then the neighbor across the street saw him laying on the ground," Buzza said.  "This doesn't seem to be a busy street but the cars do come down here rather quickly."

Buzza says the young man hails from Freedom in Beaver County.  KDKA's Amy Wadas spoke to one of Poliak's friends over Facebook.  He says Poliak was starting to turn his life around.  He's no stranger to the law according to court records.  Previous offenses include DUI, vandalism and possession.

Anyone who has any information related to this incident is asked to contact county police.

This is a developing story, stay with KDKA and KDKA.com for more information.

Join The Conversation On The KDKA Facebook Page
Stay Up To Date, Follow KDKA On Twitter