Driver Accused Of Dragging Teen For Nearly 3 Miles In Fatal Hit-And-Run

A 19-year-old Wisconsin woman was found dead on New Year’s Day after being dragged for almost three miles by a car driven by someone she knew. 

Taya Grimes of Hartford, Wisconsin, was identified by family as one of the victims of a car crash at about 1 a.m. in Auburn, according to WISN-TV in Milwaukee, citing the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office .

According to the ABC affiliate, deputies said Grimes was driving four friends home when she crashed into a ditch and she and three of her friends were thrown from the car.

Deputies suspect that the crash was alcohol-related, but her mother, Laurie Blake, told WISN on Tuesday that her daughter would never drive drunk.

“I know my daughter was extremely against drunk driving. She was very much against it,” Blake told the TV station.

According to Fox affiliate WITI-TV,  deputies said Grimes was then struck by a car driven by a 19-year-old man she knew and who was driving alongside them.

Deputies accused the driver of leaving the scene and continuing to drive while his car dragged Grimes for nearly three miles.

Grimes’ mother told WISN that she hoped her daughter was not conscious when the car struck her.

“How do you not know you’re dragging somebody? How do you not know? I mean it seems almost sinister to me,” Blake told the ABC station.

Blake added that her daughter’s boyfriend came to her home to tell her about the accident.  

“He said that there were bodies all over the road and he was desperately trying to find my daughter. He looked in ditches, he looked in the field, he couldn’t find her,” Blake said.

The four passengers from her car were taken to the hospital, including a 17-year-old who was listed in critical condition.

According to WITI, the 19-year-old driver was taken into custody “on suspicion of hit-and-run resulting in death.”

In a statement to HuffPost on Wednesday, the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office said it had received numerous calls about the incident and was working closely with the district attorney’s office.

According to the statement, the suspect is awaiting an initial court appearance and no formal charges have yet been filed.