ATLANTA — Atlanta Police are asking for help in locating the driver responsible for the death of a 32-year-old mother in a hit-and-run on I-20 earlier this month.
On Thursday, officers gathered, along with Shantea Reeves' loved ones, to ask anyone with information to please get in touch with Crime Stoppers.
While officers were initially led to believe that the suspected car was a black Mustang, footage from traffic cameras now indicates that it is a Lexus.
Atlanta Police also noted that the car was likely heavily damaged.
Reeves' mother was also in attendance and made a tearful plea for help bringing the perpetrator to justice.
"If you know anything or you were out riding that night, please, you can call Crime Stoppers... Even if it's you who did it, how could you live knowing you hurt somebody? You took a life," she said before describing how Shantea's body had been struck multiple times to the point of no longer being intact.
"I lost my first, my daughter; she was a replica of me... I can't believe this is happening; it feels like a dream," Reeves' mother added as tears streamed down her face.
A friend of Reeves' mother was also in attendance and spoke about the hurt the incident has caused the family, adding "the mental toll that she is going through, nobody should have to deal with that."
More on the case
Atlanta Police said Shantea Reeves was killed on August 4 when she was hit on the shoulder of I-20 eastbound just past Moreland Avenue by a car that was allegedly street racing.
The preliminary investigation indicated that a black car was racing another vehicle on the interstate and appeared to have hit Reeves, who was walking on the side of the shoulder. According to police, the car did not remain on the scene.
"She was my angel. She was an angel that was helping people," Della Reeves, Shantea's mother, said in an exclusive interview with 11Alive.
Through her heartbreak, her one wish is to find whoever took her daughter's life. The young mom leaves behind her 11-year-old daughter, Claire Reeves.
"I need this for people to help me find who did this to her, for the justice, for people to understand. We want to know who did this. We want justice. We want her name never to be forgotten," Della said.
The family is planning her funeral for late August as they work to get Claire enrolled in school. If you'd like to help, you can donate here.