Suspect in fatal hit-and-run in Phoenix from 2018 still on loose

Authorities are searching for the suspect who is accused of killing a woman in a hit-and-run late last year.

Phoenix Police Sgt. Jamie Rothschild said a vehicle exited Interstate 10 eastbound to 35th Avenue and lost control just before 4 a.m. on Dec. 29.

It struck 37-year-old Alem Berhe, who may have been in the median.

“There were people in the area who saw her in the roadway and called for help but unfortunately, Berhe died from her injuries,” Rothschild said.

Authorities believe the vehicle then ended up in the northbound lanes of 35th Avenue before taking off southbound. There is no description of the suspect vehicle.

Read more about this crime here.

Next: “This is a case that probably started as a shoplifting,” says Rothschild. “But the suspect elevated the seriousness of this crime when he left because he took a knife out.”

It happened at the Fry’s Electronics store at Thunderbird and 31st Avenue. It was late Sunday afternoon, about 5:30, on February 11, 2018.  The suspect opened the package of a satellite tracking device then hid the item on his person and headed for the door.

“And when he went to leave he made no effort to pay for it. That’s when a Loss Prevention Employee tried to stop him but the suspect took out a knife and threatened him with it,” says Sgt. Rothschild.

Elevating the crime to Felony Aggravated Assault and Armed Robbery.

Read more about this crime here.

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