Police Say They Have Person of Interest, Recovered Vehicle in Center City Hit-&-Run

UPDATE: The woman died from her injuries Wednesday afternoon, police said. New details HERE.

A mother was flung into the air and her 8-year-old daughter hurt when a speeding hit-and-run driver struck them in Center City Philadelphia Tuesday night, police said. 

By Wednesday afternoon, Philadelphia told NBC10 that investigators had a person of interest in the crash in custody and believed they had found the SUV that struck the woman and child.

Shortly after 10 p.m. Tuesday, a police officer spotted a dark gray Jeep speeding the wrong way on JFK Boulevard near City Hall, investigators said. The officer followed the vehicle and notified other officers. It was last seen near 13th and Filbert streets.

"At this time they did not know why the vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed with its headlights off," Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said.

Officers then "clearly saw" the Jeep speeding westbound on Arch Street from 8th Street, police said. They followed the vehicle as well. 

Léelo en español aquí.

At the same time, a woman in her late 30s and three girls -- ages 8, 10 and 11 -- were walking near the Trader Joe's at 13th and Arch streets, police said. As they were walking, the speeding Jeep struck the woman and her 8-year-old daughter, according to investigators.

On Wednesday, officials said, two of the children were able to avoid being struck by the vehicle.

One witness told police the woman appeared to try and push the children out of the way as the Jeep came speeding toward them. 

Police said the impact knocked the woman out of their shoes and she was launched 20 feet.

The driver of the Jeep continued driving after the crash, investigators said. 

Police immediately began to render aid to the woman and the injured child, Small said.

The woman was unconscious and bleeding, suffering severe head trauma. The girl that was struck suffered internal injuries and head trauma, police said.

The woman and the children were taken to hospitals. Two children did not need treatment and were not injured, but were shaken by what happened, police said.

The woman underwent surgery in critical condition at a nearby hospital, while her daughter was placed in ICU at a children's hospital, officials said.  

Other witnesses said they heard the children referring to the woman as “mom,” leading police to believe she is the mother of the three kids. She was not immediately identified.

"We believe it's the mother and three of her children who were crossing Arch Street when they were struck by this Jeep," Small said.

Debris from the hit-and-run vehicle as well as the shoes the woman and children were wearing were left at the scene of the crash.

"They were hit with such force and such speed that they were launched out of their footwear," Small said.

Police said they would look at cameras at the intersection of Broad and Arch streets as well as cameras from nearby businesses as they search for the hit-and-run vehicle, which they described as a dark gray Jeep Liberty with front-end damage. 

By Wednesday afternoon, police had found a vehicle they believed could be involved. They also had a person of interest in custody, but didn't name that person.