The recent string of vehicles crashing into pedestrians continued on Sunday when a Lisbon man allegedly struck a 72-year-old woman in the Topsham Market Basket parking lot before fleeing the scene.
Topsham Police and Topsham Fire and Rescue responded to reports of a hit-and-run incident in the Market Basket parking lot at around 2:40 p.m. First responders arrived to discover that the victim, Althea Kennedy-Ecker, 72, of Lisbon, was laying in the crosswalk with numerous injuries.
The victim was transported to Maine Medical Center in Portland for treatment of serious injuries.
Multiple witnesses described the incident and were able to provide the license plate number for the Mazda CX-5 that allegedly struck Kennedy-Ecker. The victim’s son, who was allegedly almost struck, told police that the vehicle sped up before hitting his mother and then fled.
Another witness claimed that the vehicle accelerated through the parking lot, returned to its original position, and then accelerated again, striking Kennedy-Ecker.
Market Basket employees informed police that the driver had nearly struck an employee while allegedly accelerating erratically through the parking lot. Surveillance footage from Market Basket allegedly confirmed the witness accounts.
Topsham officers received notice through the Sagadahoc County Communications Center that the suspect’s vehicle had been stopped by Brunswick Police on Route 1 in Brunswick.
Topsham police joined the Brunswick officers at the site of the traffic stop and allegedly confirmed that the vehicle matched the one that struck Kennedy-Ecker and had damage consistent with the crash.
Law enforcement arrested the driver, Jeremy Hunter, 46, of Booker Street in Lisbon, and transported him to the Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset, where he faces charges of aggravated assault, reckless conduct, and driving to endanger.
He was issued a $50,000 bail, with a court date set for October 7th.
The Topsham Police Department press release noted that the Brunswick Police had taken a report of a hit-and-run crash that occurred prior to the incident in the Market Basket parking lot. They did not specify whether the same suspect is believed to be responsible for both incidents.
