In a tragic incident early Sunday morning, a woman was killed by a stolen forklift in Waldorf, Maryland, approximately 30 miles south of Washington D.C. Charles County Sheriff's deputies responded to a home improvement store on Crain Highway around 12:40 a.m. after reports of a break-in.
Witnesses described the suspect breaking into the store, stealing a forklift, and then crashing through the gates to escape. Upon arrival, law enforcement found the scene abandoned. A subsequent search of the area led to the discovery of the stolen forklift with a deceased woman trapped beneath. The suspect, however, remained at large.
Investigators believe the suspect encountered the victim in a nearby business parking lot, where she was struck by the forklift. The suspect then fled the scene in the woman's vehicle, a dark-colored 2019 Ford Fusion with noticeable damage to the passenger side and a missing side mirror. The victim's identity is being withheld pending notification of next of kin, and the connection between the victim and the suspect, if any, remains under investigation.
Authorities are actively searching for the suspect and the stolen vehicle. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Charles County Sheriff's Office.
