A missing Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University professor, under investigation for leaving the scene of a drunk driving accident last week, was found dead Monday from a self-inflicted gunshot wound  behind a Holiday Inn in Martin County, Florida.

James Solti, 57, rear-ended a flatbed truck on April 17 after he’d been out drinking with Cassie Harrison, who he left behind with injuries in his car when he fled the scene, the Daytona Beach News Journal reported.

Harrison was taken to the hospital and initially told investigators someone other than Solti had been driving, but her daughter called police the next day and emphatically reported that Solti was the driver, according to a charging affidavit issued while Solti was still hiding out.

Solti is ” … missing because he was driving drunk and left a woman to die in the car. He’s missing because he’s hiding from the Port Orange Police Department. Charges have been filed and he’s wanted for felony charges,” Melody Walker, Harrison’s daughter, wrote on Facebook.

The charging document says that Solti and Harrison had been out at a restaurant drinking then went to a second restaurant to continue drinking. An employee at the second restaurant said that Solti was drinking far more than Harrison and that he had caused problems with the staff before they left. Solti was behind the wheel when they left, the employee said.

Police went to Solti’s home after the crash and heard movement inside, but no one answered the door. Solti also turned off his cell phone, the document said.

Investigators charged him with leaving the scene of a crash with injuries without rendering aid and kept looking for him.

Solti, a retired Air Force veteran, had worked at Embry-Riddle since 2018.

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[Featured image: James Solti/Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University]