Hit And Run Spree Ends in Montco With 1 Dead, Many Hurt: DA

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA — The driver in a series of fatal hit and runs that left multiple people injured and one dead was arrested early Wednesday morning in Montgomery County, according to authorities and media reports. Police said they believed that Kareem Welton, 40, of Philadelphia, may have been under the influence of both alcohol and drugs, though specifics remain unclear.

The incident began at around 2 a.m. at Broad and Lombard streets in Philadelphia, when Welton, driving a stolen Chevy Malibu, rear-ended a motorcycle, according to police. That crash left a woman hospitalized and a man with minor injuries.

Moments later, just a few blocks away on 15th and South, Welton rode up onto the sidewalk and where another man and a 32-year-old woman were walking, according to authorities.

The man was not hit, but the woman was run over. The driver then turned around and ran over the woman a second time, according to authorities. She later died from her injuries.

The pair had been walking home from a nearby restaurant where they worked, police said.

Welton then ditched the car nearby, stole another vehicle, and continued out of Center City into Manayunk, police said. There, investigators said he struck another pedestrian near the corner of Umbria and Hermitage streets, leaving that individual hospitalized.

Welton continued out into the suburbs, striking a 38-year-old runner on Main Street Collegeville, police said. The runner's spine and legs were fractured and he was life-flighted to a nearby hospital but he is expected to survive.

Authorities in Montgomery County finally took the man into custody near 3rd and Park avenues in Collegeville.

Welton has been charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault in Montgomery County, and charges are pending in Philadelphia. He was awaiting arraignment as of late Wednesday afternoon. A preliminary hearing is forthcoming.