Newly obtained police body camera video shows Riviera Beach City Manager Bill Wilkins describing the Aug. 18 hit-and-run crash that preceded his nearly two-month absence from City Hall, according to WPBF 25 News Investigates.
In the footage, Wilkins stands beside his city-owned Ford Explorer on West Blue Heron Boulevard and tells officers he was in the center lane when a gold sedan swerved into him and struck the front driver’s side. He said the sedan drove on, made a U-turn and passed him again, which he took to mean the driver knew a collision had happened. Officers reviewed surveillance footage but said they could not find the sedan. The driver remains unidentified.
Wilkins told officers he was not hurt. The crash report lists no injuries and estimates damage at about $1,000. Police Chief Michael Coleman said officers first treated the crash as minor, but city policy requires hospital testing for employees in crashes while driving city vehicles. Wilkins’s wife confirmed to the station that he suffered a brain bleed. Sources say he has been in and out of the hospital and is in rehabilitation.
A council discussion of Wilkins’s status was set for Wednesday night, but a dispute over whether a council member could take part by phone led to a 2-2 vote on the agenda, and the meeting was canceled. About 100 people in the audience left without answers. Councilwoman Shirley Lanier, who voted to proceed, criticized the cancellation on social media.
Assistant City Manager Kevin Coppin is handling day-to-day operations, and the city is searching for a permanent manager. Wilkins, 79, is paid an annual base salary of about $266,000. Residents still have no public explanation of when he might return.
