Photo: Prince George's County Police Department
A suspect was taken into custody after a 90-minute violent crime spree across Maryland. The first incident occurred just after 5 p.m. on Thursday (January 25) when police received a report that a driver drove onto the sidewalk in Capitol Heights and struck an adult woman, who suffered minor injuries.
Ten minutes later, they received another report that a driver had struck two pedestrians, including a 15-year-old, about 1.5 miles from the first incident. The suspect then got out of her car and stabbed the 15-year-old.
The stabbing victim was taken to the hospital in critical condition, while the other person who was struck by the vehicle suffered minor injuries.
Fifteen minutes later, police received a third report of a pedestrian being struck by a vehicle about three miles away. That victim suffered minor injuries. A few minutes later, the suspect struck again, hitting another pedestrian, who also sustained minor injuries.
About an hour later, police received another report that a man had been stabbed multiple times near a gas station. Authorities said the suspect hailed an Uber and then stabbed the driver after getting into his vehicle. He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
Investigators said that all of the victims appeared to be picked at random.
Several hours later, police announced they had a suspect in custody. Officials did not identify her or provide any details about a potential motive for the 90-minute violent crime spree.
Deputy Chief James McCreary of the Prince George's County Police likened the search for the suspect to that of the Washington, D.C., sniper, who terrorized the region for 22 days in 2004.
"The closest thing I can think of in recent memory was the D.C. sniper when I was coming up. It's shocking," McCreary told reporters.