Raleigh police seek public’s help finding driver who hit 12-year-old girl and drove off

Police are still looking for the driver of a car that hit and killed a 12-year-old girl on Hillsborough Street two weeks ago and are asking the public for help.

Raleigh police are offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information that might lead to an arrest. They disclosed the reward on flyers that officers handed out to drivers Friday afternoon near where the girl was hit near Bashford Road.

Samantha Briggs was hit about 7:30 p.m. on the day after Thanksgiving as she and four others were attempting to cross Hillsborough after a trip to a Sheetz convenience store on nearby Chapel Hill Road. Police say the driver was going eastbound on Hillsborough and drove off after hitting Samantha.

Samantha died after being taken to a hospital, police said. She had just turned 12 on Thanksgiving, according to her aunt, Charise Swinnie.

Based on debris left at the scene, police initially thought the car was a Hyundai. They now think it’s a Honda Civic EX, model year 2006, 2007 or 2008.

There are no crosswalks or streetlights near where Samantha was hit. The speed limit along that stretch of Hillsborough is 45 mph, and the road is three lanes wide, with two travel lanes and a center turn lane.

Police ask anyone who thinks they may have information that might help their hit-and-run investigation to visit Crimestoppers at www.p3tips.com/897 for text and email reporting options or call 919-996-1193.

Samantha Briggs is one of five pedestrians hit and killed on Raleigh streets and roads since Nov. 11. The most recent was Otoniel Hernandez, 35, who was struck on Glenwood Avenue near Rembert Drive on Wednesday, Dec. 14. The driver in that case did not drive off, and police said they did not anticipate filing any charges.