Hit-And-Run Suspect Drove 2 Miles With Victim's Body Stuck In Windshield: Police

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — A 28-year-old New Carrollton man involved in a minor car crash in the 899 block of Annapolis Road Oct. 21 climbed out of his vehicle and was hit by another vehicle, becoming lodged in the car's windshield.

Instead of stopping, the driver who hit Franklin Membreno Mendez drove for about two miles with the man's body stuck in his windshield. The victim's body was left on the side of the road and the driver fled, according to Prince George's County Police.

Officers were called to the 7500 block of Ardwick Ardmore Road around 4:05 a.m. to check on the victim. Mendez was pronounced dead at the scene.

The suspect's car in the hit-and-run is believed to be a 2011-2017 gray Honda Civic with a large white decal across the top of the back window. The car would have damage to the passenger side front bumper, fender and a hole in the windshield. A photo is below.

“If you’re seeing a vehicle matching this description, with this type of damage, we strongly urge you to contact us,” Prince George’s County police public information officer Emily Austin told WTOP. “It’s very important for us to be able to locate the vehicle and the driver that was involved in this incident.”

Austin said the “extremely disturbing circumstances” of this hit-and-run mean that no detail is too small to share with the department.

“We empathize with this person’s family and knowing the details of what their loved one went through, and so that’s why it’s so important to us to have the community’s assistance in locating this driver and the vehicle so that we can try to bring some closure and understanding to how, perhaps why this occurred,” she said.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to call police at 301-731-4422.