CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A man is facing charges in connection with a 34-year-old hit-and-run cold case in Uptown Charlotte, detectives announced Friday.
Ruth Buchanan was crossing the intersection of Fifth Street and North Tryon on Dec. 29, 1989, when she was hit by a dark-colored car that ran a red light. The driver, identified as Herbert Stanback, did not stop and drove away from the scene, according to CMPD. Buchana was taken to Charlotte Memorial Hospital with serious injuries and died the next day.
Witnesses gave detectives a description and the license plate number of the suspect vehicle, which was reported stolen.
In January 1990, CMPD responded to a call of a suspicious vehicle on South Tryon Street. The officers determined the car, a 1990 Mitsubishi Gallant, had a stolen license plate. The tag matched the plate number given to CMPD at the scene of the Uptown crash. Detectives determined the vehicle was stolen from a car dealership in Charlotte.
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Due to a lack of evidence, the case went cold for over 30 years. In early 2022, CMPD received a Crime Stoppers tip from a man believed to be involved in the crash. Detectives found out that the man wasn't actually involved in the crash, but the tip led them to analyze evidence gathered from the stolen car.
DNA analysis identified the suspect as Stanback. Now 68, Stanback is currently in jail in Laurinburg, North Carolina, serving a 22-year prison sentence for an unrelated case.
On March 20, Stanback allegedly confessed to hitting Buchanan on Dec. 29, 1989. Investigators later discovered that he was on a work-release program at the Charlotte Correctional Institute when the crash happened. Following his interview, Stanback was served a warrant for felony hit-and-run. He was transported to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office where he was formally charged.
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