POKAGON TOWNSHIP — An Elkhart man died Sunday evening after he was struck by a vehicle driven by a local minor in Pokagon Township, according to the Cass County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies with the department were dispatched around 7:25 p.m. to a report that a man had been struck on M-51 near Pokagon Highway, after receiving a complaint that a man was in the roadway minutes beforehand.

Upon arrival, police discovered that 53-year-old Howard Payton, of Elkhart, had been fatally hit by a vehicle operated by a minor who resides in the area. The driver was heading southwest on M-51 when she struck the man.

The driver was treated and released by ambulance workers at the scene, and was wearing her seatbelt at the time of the accident. It is not known if drugs or alcohol played a role in the incident.

Police are currently withholding additional information about the driver, due to the fact she is a minor.

Southwest Michigan Community Ambulance Service, Pokagon Fire Department, Pokagon Band Tribal Police and the Michigan State Police assisted county deputies at the scene.