Maryland police are searching for a driver who, in a seemingly casual manner, walked around their vehicle, peeling a dead body from the car's windshield, took a smoke break, and then drove off. The Prince George's County Police Department said that they found Franklin Mendez on the roadside with injuries shortly after 4 a.m.
Cops were first informed about the incident by horrified neighbors after they found the half-naked body of Mendez in a ditch outside their homes on Ardwick Ardmore Road. Officers, initially in disbelief, realized that the 28-year-old victim from New Carrollton had been hit by a vehicle on Annapolis Road earlier that morning.
Chilling Act Caught on Camera
Surprisingly, the driver had transported the body for two miles along the highway before stopping on the quiet back street. Upon checking doorbell cameras, neighbors found that the driver who had hit Mendez had stopped, exited his vehicle, and removed the slain man's body from his windshield, as reported by Fox 5 DC.
Despite the well-lit street, he took his time as he carefully dislodged the wedged body from his damaged car. After this macabre act, he took a U-turn and continued on his way, leaving a sizable hole in the windshield.
According to police statements to the outlet, Mendez had been involved in a separate minor collision on the 8900 block of Annapolis Road, two miles away before he was struck by the suspect who was driving a silver Honda.
Following the initial accident, Mendez was hit by another vehicle. Authorities have issued an appeal for help in locating the driver and have said that the victim, Mendez, was already dead by the time they arrived at the scene.
"All his clothes were gone from his waist down,' said the neighbor whose camera filmed the incident. I called the police and the police came but then when I looked at the camera it showed he took his time, that's why I think he probably knows the neighborhood,' she told Fox 5.
"He took his time getting out the car, he walked around and then he was round there for a couple of minutes and when he came back, he got in the vehicle, lit a cigarette or whatever.
"And then he made a U-turn in front of my house."
Hunt for the Suspect On
The vehicle involved in the incident is thought to be a gray Honda Civic from the model years 2011 to 2017. It will have a distinctive large white decal on the top of the rear window.
The car should also display noticeable damage on its passenger side front bumper and fender, as well as a hole in the windshield, as described by the police.
They are appealing to the public to provide any information they may have regarding the suspect.
Friends of the El Salvadorian-born digital creator have set up a GoFundMe page with the intention of raising funds to cover the expenses associated with his funeral.
