Bell ringer seriously injured in NC hit and run, Salvation Army says. Cops arrest duo
A mother-son duo in North Carolina have been charged following a hit-and-run crash that landed a Salvation Army bell ringer in the hospital, according to police and media reports.
Greensboro police arrested Jasper Wingate Jr., 41, Wednesday on charges of felony hit and run injury in connection to the crash that critically injured 57-year-old Katrina Calles, according to an incident report obtained by McClatchy News.
Hazel Marie Wingate is charged with fleeing the scene of an accident and property damage, police said.
Hazel Wingate is Jasper’s mother, TV station WFMY reports. Jasper Wingate was driving, and Hazel was a passenger at the time of the crash, the station reported.
Officers responding to a hit pedestrian Tuesday around 8:45 p.m. found Calles laying in the roadway, unresponsive.
Authorities believe she had taken the bus and was walking home from her shift as a Salvation Army bell ringer when she was struck, WGHP reported. Witnesses reported seeing a sedan-style car flee the area, according to the news station.
Police said Calles was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.
The Salvation Army of Greenboro said it was “saddened” to hear of Calles’ accident and confirmed that she had worked Tuesday night, and was scheduled to work the next day.
“Our prayers are with her friends and family at this time,” the organization told McClatchy News in a statement Thursday.
Anita Thompson, Calles’ longtime neighbor, was shocked to hear what had happened to her friend and noted that the road where Calles was hit is a hot spot for accidents.
“I knew there was an accident up there when I left to go to work this morning, but I didn’t know it was her,” Thompson told WGHP. “She could’ve died behind this.”
An online search of Guilford County jail records on Thursday show Jasper and Hazel Wingate are no longer in custody.
This story was originally published December 3, 2020 at 6:26 PM.