AHOSKIE – An Ahoskie woman wants to know who is responsible for critical injuries sustained by her teenage daughter, the victim of a hit-and-run accident here last week.

So do the Ahoskie Police.

A 15-year-old Ahoskie girl remains hospitalized in Greenville while the Ahoskie Police Department searches for the person responsible for the Jan. 17 accident.

According to Ahoskie Police Chief Troy Fitzhugh, the mother and daughter were walking south on Catherine Street shortly before 6:30 p.m. when both were struck from behind by a vehicle. That vehicle left the scene before police could arrive.

“That’s a felony,” Chief Fitzhugh said of the hit-and-run incident.

APD Captain M.A. Garrett, who is in charge of the investigation, said her probe into the case revealed that the mother and daughter were walking on the pavement, both close to the curb. There are no sidewalks on that stretch of Catherine Street.

“The daughter was to the left of her mother, who was walking close to the curb,” Capt. Garrett said. “The vehicle struck the young girl from behind. We’re not 100 percent sure at this point, but we feel that the impact caused the young girl to become airborne and she landed on the windshield of the vehicle. At that time we believe the vehicle came to a quick stop, the girl rolled off the hood onto the street, and the vehicle sped off.”

Garrett said she collected evidence, chrome and plastic pieces from an automobile, at the scene.

The information Garrett gained from the mother leads her to believe that the vehicle was an older model passenger car, perhaps a Chrysler model, silver or gray in color. The car suffered front end damage, particularly to its right front passenger’s side, and perhaps a broken windshield.

Capt. Garrett added that, according to the mother, the sound of bottles breaking (as they were perhaps thrown from the car) and laughter from those in the vehicle could be heard following impact.

“She (the mother) told us there were two black males in the front seat of the car, but she couldn’t tell if they were any other passengers,” Garrett said.

Garrett said that although the accident occurred after sunset, the streetlights were working.

Following the mishap, the teen was transported by Hertford County EMS to Roanoke-Chowan Hospital. Later that night, she was airlifted by EastCare to Pitt County Memorial Hospital in Greenville.

Chief Fitzhugh said the teen’s injuries were “life-threatening.”

The mother was struck in the hand by the vehicle, but required no medical attention.

Fitzhugh said he seeks the public’s help in solving this case.

“Anyone who may have saw or heard something in the Catherine Street area, near the old pickle plant, around 6:24 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 19, we ask that they give us a call,” he said. “The identity of all callers is kept confidential.”

Those with information can contact Capt. Garrett at 332-5011 or the APD’s Crimestoppers Hotline at 332-4066.