JUSTIN: Delivery driver arrested after serious hit-and-run in Maywood

A food delivery driver was arrested and charged with two felonies after a serious hit-and-run pedestrian crash last month.

Police said Ronnell Blakeney, 33, was arrested Wednesday and is now in jail, charged with aggravated battery and hit-and-run. They say Blakeney hit the victim with his car during an argument about Blakeney driving too fast in the neighborhood.

This is consistent with what a local resident, who wished to remain anonymous, told ARLnow last month.

“The car was traveling at full speed. It’s on video,” she said. “[The victim] yelled at the driver to slow down. The driver was a man and a woman was sitting in the passenger seat. He was hit hard. It's not good.”

“There were several witnesses, the neighborhood was busy with pedestrians, people playing in their yards and people walking their dogs,” added the resident. She said the victim was a middle-aged man with teenage children, not an elderly person as initially reported.

The victim is still recovering in hospital after the May 23 incident, according to police.

This may not be Blakeney's first episode of automotive mayhem.

A person of the same name, approximate age and appearance allegedly led police on a wild chase of a stolen car from Maryland to DC, which resulted in multiple crashes. In 2000, a nine-year-old child of the same name allegedly rode in the family van and on a stolen charter bus.

Court records show no prior charges in Arlington.

More information on the arrest below, from an Arlington County Police press release.

The Arlington County Police Department announces the arrest of the driver as part of a critical investigation into a hit-and-run accident. Ronnell Blakeney, 33, of Baltimore, Maryland, is charged with aggravated malicious wounding and hit and run. He is being held without bail in the Arlington County Detention Center.

At approximately 7:12 p.m. on May 23, police were dispatched to the 3300 block of 22nd Street N. for a report of a hit-and-run accident. The preliminary investigation indicates that the suspect was driving at a high speed while making food deliveries in the area. The victim, an adult male, approached the suspect vehicle and a verbal argument over the suspect's driving ensued, during which the suspect struck the victim with the vehicle, causing serious injuries. The suspect then fled in his vehicle after the accident.

The victim was transported to an area hospital with serious injuries. He remains hospitalized and continues to recover from injuries sustained in the crash.

Following news of the accident, detectives immediately began a critical investigation into the accident. A review of crime scene evidence and interviews with witnesses led detectives to identify the suspect. He was taken into police custody on the evening of June 5, 2024.

This remains an active criminal investigation. Anyone with information that could help the investigation is asked to contact Detective Galiatsos at 703-228-4163 or [email protected]. Information can also be provided anonymously through the Arlington County Crime Solvers hotline at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477). For additional community resources and contact information, visit our website.