Linn County Authorities Investigating Two Hit-and-Run Accidents

Authorities in Linn County are working on two separate hit-and-run accidents that occurred over the last week.

The Cedar Rapids Police Department is asking for the public's help with a hit-and-run that happened on Monday, November 9, just before 7 a.m., on 33rd Avenue near the corner 18th Street SW.

According to a media release, the two-vehicle crash involved a minivan and a pickup. The truck was eastbound on 33rd Avenue when it went across the centerline, hitting the minivan head-on. Witnesses told the Cedar Rapids Police Department that the pickup driver fled the scene on foot, following the wreck. Police were able to determine the pickup had been stolen from Cancun Mexican Grill & Bar on 33rd Ave S.W. earlier in the morning.

The minivan driver, 34-year-old Haley Wiebel, had to be extricated from her vehicle. She was taken to Mercy Medical Center with "several traumatic injuries," according to the media release. No update on her condition is available.

Anyone with information on the driver of the pickup is asked to call the Cedar Rapids Police Department at (319) 286-5491.

Tuesday evening, November 17, another two-vehicle hit-and-run accident happened, this time in rural Linn County, at Stoney Point Road and Covington Road.

A release from the Linn County Sheriff's Office says deputies, along with Area Ambulance, Linn County Rescue, and Palo Fire, all responded to the accident at around 8:45 p.m. Tuesday night at Stoney Point Road and Covington Road.

The Linn County Sheriff's Office says 79-year-old Marvel Janko of Cedar Rapids had been traveling south on Covington Road when a northbound vehicle went across the centerline, hitting Janko's vehicle. Janko was wearing her seat belt and was taken to a local hospital. Her injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

The other vehicle left the scene of the crash, which is still being investigated by the Linn County Sheriff's Office.