8-year-old Upper Darby girl hospitalized after hit-and-run; driver quickly caught

An 8-year-old girl who was struck Thursday night by a hit-and-run driver in Upper Darby remains in serious but guarded condition at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, when she recovers from a compound leg fracture, an injured shoulder and head swelling.

Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said the driver stopped momentarily at the Powell Lane scene before speeding off.
Several witnesses were able to provide police with a description of the vehicle, down to four numbers on the license plate, he added.

As law-enforcement happenstance would have it, officers were stationed on nearby Chestnut Street for a traffic detail.

“They heard screeching tires and then saw a vehicle speed through two stop signs about a minute later,” Chitwood said.

Quickly arrested

When officers stopped the vehicle five or six blocks away on Marlborough Road, the red Nissan matched the witness descriptions and the numbers 6940 on the license plate matched what was reported, Chitwood said.

Arrested on aggravated assault with a vehicle, leaving the scene of an accident and various other charges was Sukhjinder Singh, 33, of the 7000 block of Walnut St. He is being held in lieu of $200,000 cash bail as he awaits a court hearing next week.

Chitwood said alcohol is not believed to be involved in the case, but blood was taken from Singh after plastic bags consistent with those in which heroin is sold were found under the front seat of the car. Police await the results of testing before potentially adding additional charges, he said.

“I spoke to her father this morning and the little girl is going to live,” Chitwood said after a Friday morning press conference. “People who hit someone and just leave them in the street like that, when they get caught and we lock them up, we should throw away the key.”