A man in Ashburn, Virginia, is accused of hitting a woman with his car at an intersection. Allegedly, this individual, who is yet to be identified, then placed the victim in his car, took her to a local hospital, and ended up fleeing.
According to a release issued by the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO), the incident occurred at around 4:50 p.m. on Thursday, May 21. LCSO deputies were informed that an adult female had been hit by a vehicle and was lying on the ground at the intersection of Farmwell Road and Hemingway Drive.
However, upon arrival, the woman, who was seen bleeding, was nowhere to be found. That is when deputies learned from witnesses that an adult male had placed her in a black 2014 GMC vehicle, leaving the scene shortly after.
At the time, the LCSO was seeking witnesses as they investigated the rather unusual incident. Subsequent reports, however, painted an even more convoluted picture.
Connecting the Dots
NBC4 initially reported the information as is. At the time, it was believed that two different individuals had been involved in the incident: one who hit the woman, and one who picked her up in the GMC.
However, the outlet issued a correction, clarifying that a single man was allegedly behind both. Furthermore, a cited dispatch conversation showed that even the dispatcher was working with limited or confusing information and had to correct herself.
“Pedestrian struck,” the dispatcher can be heard. “The subject in a GMC struck a female and then dragged her into the car. Correction: struck her with his car and then dragged her into the vehicle.”
Local police began searching for the woman immediately. However, she was found shortly after at Inova Loudon Hospital, located in Lansdowne, Virginia. She had suffered serious injuries. An officer didn’t find the GMC, as per the dispatch audio, and the suspect was nowhere around.
Residents React
Various witnesses detailed how they came across the scene. Among them is Broad Run High School student Mason Lee, who was walking home from school at the time.
“It did seem pretty serious from the amount of people there,” he said. “They closed the road. They put up caution tape and everything. You could tell that something kinda went down.”
Ashburn resident Alicia Robinson, meanwhile, was confused as she watched investigators working at the scene. She said, “Definitely sounds like a mystery. […] The fact there are still questions. Something is not right.”
Additional Details, Further Questions
Additional information reported by NBC4 showed that, at the time of the incident, there were children present inside the GMC vehicle. It is unclear if they were harmed in any way.
The outlet was able to visit the victim’s home and found that, apparently, she was the owner of the GMC vehicle. It was later confirmed that her car’s license plate matched the one seen leaving the scene. A neighbor also detailed that the woman has two children, potentially the ones present in the incident.
Conflicting information quickly arose. As reported by Loudoun Now, another witness detailed that a LCSO detective believed that the woman had not been struck, but rather jumped from the car. Not only that, but the witness also detailed that the suspect didn’t flee the hospital, but rather stayed there, at least at first.
The suspect, meanwhile, has yet to be identified and wasn’t located, despite an hours-long search. The LCSO has not filed any charges, but the incident is not being considered a case of abduction. There is no confirmation on whether the victim and the suspect are related.