A Virginia Muslim girl, 17-year-old girl Nabra Hassanen, was found dead after reportedly being separated from her friends by a confrontational motorist while walking home from a Fairfax County restaurant.
Hassanen was reported missing on Sunday after she and a group of friends had visited an IHOP restaurant in Sterling to end their daily fast for the holy month of Ramadan, said The Washington Post, and they said they were walking back when the motorist confronted them.
The rest of the group fled for safety at a local mosque, but Hassanen got left behind.
The mosque, All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS), released a statement about the incident.
“On Sunday, June 18th 2017, at approximately 4 am, according to Fairfax County Police, a dispute occurred between a group of teens who were walking along Dranesville Road in Sterling and a man driving a car. It appears the man got out of his car and assaulted one of them, a 17-year-old girl. Community members came across the group and directed them to ADAMS Center.”
ADAMS’ personnel notified Loudon County and Fairfax County authorities and an extensive search was launched to find the missing girl.
Police confirmed the incident, saying the suspect got out of his car and assaulted the victim.
“Her friends could not find her and police were called to help,” said a Fairfax Country Police Department statement.
“Numerous patrol officers from the Fairfax County Police and Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office immediately began an extensive search," the statement continued.
“The police helicopter, K-9 teams and search and rescue teams also responded to search for the missing teen, whom officers believed to be injured. While searching, one officer saw a car driving suspiciously in the area and stopped it. The driver, later identified as Martinez Torres, was taken into custody as a suspect.”
At arround 3 p.m., the remains of a female were found in a pond in a pomd.
The Office of The Chief Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy to confirm the identity of the remains and determine the exact cause and manner of death, but police said they believe the remains are those of the missing teen.
A murder warrant charging Martinez Torres for Hassanen's death was later obtained.
Messages of support for Hassanen and her family have flooded social media, and a GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral costs has raised more than $55,000.
Writer and editor Jessica Goudea posted a video on Twitter of a web series she was involved in aimed at shattering misconceptions regarding Islam.
Other messages of sympathy were posted:
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