GAITHERSBURG, Md. — Following a gruesome and deadly hit-and-run crash, a reward is being offered for information in the case as family members plead for answers.
At around 9:30 p.m. on Aug. 4, 77-year-old Julius Newton was crossing Layhill Road, not far from Bel Pre Road in the Aspen Hill area, when he was struck by a car and then dragged for a mile down Bel Pre Road.
Nearly one week later, family members gathered at the Victims’ Rights Foundation headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland, to call on the driver to turn himself or herself in, and to ask for witnesses to come forward.
The volunteer-based foundation is also now offering a reward of up to $3,000 for tips given to police.
“It’s amazing how someone can just hit someone and drag them for a mile,” said Julius’ nephew, Michael Newton. “So if you did do it, just turn yourself in. And if you know anything, just tell somebody about it.”
Grandson Quanzet Newton said it’s an emotional time for the family.
“You took somebody away from me that I really love, that we all respect,” Quanzet said.
Addressing the driver directly, he added that “we’re not going to stop looking for you until we catch you.”
That was echoed by goddaughter Nancy Queen, who said, “we’re gonna be out there looking for you, whoever you are.”
She described her godfather a “godly man” who “loved everybody.”
Quanzet found it hard to believe more people did not see something.
“I walked that area for the last almost 20 years,” he said, referring to the spot near a shopping center where his grandfather was first struck. “That whole area and parking lot is packed from the morning to 12 at night.”
“We do know that someone has seen something; we do know that someone has possibly towed something to someone else,” added daughter Pamela Newton.
Montgomery County police continue to look for a late 1990s to early 2000s sedan that could be white, silver, gray or tan in color. Detective Sergeant Nick Picerno, supervisor of the Collision Reconstruction Unit, said the striking car would likely have a damaged front bumper, at the very least, but it may or may not have damage to areas like the hood and headlights.
He said officers have spoken to some witnesses who have but useful, but said he believes there are more witnesses out there who could be helpful. He said someone who recognized the color or make of the car would help their investigation, and that police would be interested in looking at any vehicle with lower front end damage.
After the crash, police said it was possible the driver could have thought an animal or an object in the road could have been struck, rather than a human.
Picerno said officers are “willing to entertain the idea maybe the person unknowingly struck” the victim, but that if that person later noticed damage on their car, it’s “better to come forward now.”
In addition to offering the reward, the Victims’ Rights Foundation, which is based in Montgomery County, plans to canvass the area of the crash and put up fliers in multiple languages.
Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call the Collision Reconstruction Unit at 240-773-6620.
