One arrested in hit-and-run that killed girl, 14; Road treated like a racetrack: locals

The police arrested a 23-year-old man from Epe on Sunday evening for a hit-and-run in the town in which a 14-year-old girl was killed. The girl was cycling with a boy on Heerderweg on Saturday night when she got hit by a light-colored Volkswagen Polo. Locals told Omroep Gelderland that people use the street as a racetrack.

The police received the first report of the accident just before midnight on Saturday night. A motorist hit the girl with their Volkswagen Polo while cycling with another child on Heerderweg. The driver fled the scene after the accident. According to witnesses, the motorist came from the direction of Heerde and fled toward Epe.

On Sunday, the police shared the car’s description and asked locals to keep an eye out for it. Officers found and confiscated the vehicle later in the day and arrested the suspect that evening.

Mayor Tom Horn of Epe said that the child’s death had a massive impact on Epe. “This is going through the town like a shock wave,” he told Radio Gelderland. “My thoughts are with her family, friends, and classmates.”

Horn did not want to comment on locals saying that motorists use the road as a racetrack and accusing the municipality of not doing anything against the speeding. “We have to wait for the police investigation,” he said.