A young woman who was run over and abandoned on a major road in Fairfax County, Virginia, has died of her injuries, police said.
Daniela Bonilla Betancourt, 18, of Alexandria, was about to finish up the school year at Fairfax High School. On May 22, shortly after 10 p.m., she left her new job and was in a crosswalk on Little River Turnpike, near Oasis Drive, when the driver of a 2007 Honda CR-V struck her and did not stop to help, police said.
Another person who saw her injured immediately called 911. She was hospitalized in critical condition.
"I just want my daughter to be fine; I just want my daughter's life; that's all I need," said Mibel Betancourt, Daniela's mother, after she was hospitalized.
While detectives were investigating, 21-year-old Abraham Lincoln Samuel, of Springfield, contacted police and told them he was involved in the crash. Samuel was charged with felony hit and run.
Daniela died of her injuries last weekend, Fairfax County police said.
Police said that details of the investigation will be presented to the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney for additional charges.
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Preliminarily, alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the crash, police said.
"It is very hard for us, for the family, to know what she was like — a happy girl," said Luis Betancourt, Daniela's uncle. "We miss her a lot because she was the joy of the house. It hurts us that this is happening to us with her. The family in Honduras is also hurt. It hurts to see her like this," he said in the aftermath of the crash.
Her mother described her as affectionate, "with many dreams."
Police said this was the eighth pedestrian-related fatality in the county this year.