‘Drove away as if she were nothing’: Police turn to public to identify hit-and-run driver

Standing alongside Montgomery County police, who are still trying to identify the driver of the car that fatally struck his mother last month, Nate Tinbite struggled for words.

“Someone took the person we love most in this world and drove away as if she were nothing,” Tinbite, 24, said through tears during a Montgomery County Police news conference on Tuesday afternoon.

Hanna Wegayehou, 61, of Silver Spring, was declared dead on scene following the 1:14 p.m. crash on June 19 near Crestmoor Drive and Colesville Road. Police said she was crossing the street when the car hit her.

Montgomery County Police Sgt. Eli Kinser, who investigates deadly traffic collisions, said detectives in the month since Wegayehou’s death have pursued credible leads, reviewed surveillance footage, interviewed witnesses and examined physical evidence.

At their Gaithersburg headquarters Tuesday, police asked for the public’s help.

“At this point, the missing piece is not another investigative technique. The missing piece is information that only someone in this community possesses,” Kinser said. “Every day that passes extends the pain for a family that deserves answers.”

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Police do have some clues about the crash.

They said the vehicle that struck Wegayehou is a dark-colored Lexus RX model from 2009 to 2014. Kinser said the break in the case is most likely going to come from a tipster who may have seen the collision, heard about a Lexus SUV with front-end damage, or knows someone who drives that vehicle but hasn’t seen the car in a month.

Detectives have narrowed their search for the SUV to about 4,000 vehicles, Kinser said.

The SUV was last seen about 1:17 p.m. heading northbound on Colesville Road toward New Hampshire Avenue.

“Helping us identify the driver isn’t about choosing sides, it’s about allowing the truth to come out and allowing our justice system to do its job,” Kinser said.

Police also urged the driver to turn himself in.

Tinbite said his family has Ethiopian roots and moved to Montgomery County in the late 1980s. Wegayehu worked for the U.S. Department of Transportation for two decades.

Tinbite said his mother would walk in the neighborhood often, and was a vegan who most likely planned to shop at Trader Joe’s on the afternoon of her death.

“She deserved so much better than to be left on the side of the road,” he said. “She deserves justice. My family won’t rest until she receives it.”

The department’s Collision Reconstruction Unit is investigating and is asking anyone with information to call the Montgomery County Police nonemergency line at 301-279-8000. Tipsters can also call Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).