6 migrant workers hit in possible intentional vehicular assault, police say

Six people were hit by a car Sunday outside a store in North Carolina.

July 31, 2023, 4:07 AM

Six people were hit by a car Sunday outside a store in North Carolina in what authorities said they suspected was an intentional assault on a group of migrant workers.

At around 1:17 p.m. local time, an unknown driver of an older model, mid-size, black, sport utility vehicle with a luggage rack, drove the vehicle into six people described as migrant workers, according to the Lincolnton Police. The alleged victims were taken to Atrium Health Lincoln, though none of their injuries appeared life-threatening, police said Sunday.

All of the victims were released from the hospital the same day, Lincolnton Police Department's interim police chief Maj. Brian Greene told ABC News on Monday. They sustained various injuries including broken and sprained ankles and some abrasions.

PHOTO: A black SUV drives in a North Carolina parking lot where police say it struck six migrant workers, in a photo released on July 31, 2023, by the Lincolnton Police Department, which requested public help in identifying the driver.
A black SUV drives in a North Carolina parking lot where police say it struck six migrant workers, in a photo released on July 31, 2023, by the Lincolnton Police Department, which requested public help in identifying the driver.
Lincolnton Police Department

The incident appeared to have been an intentional assault with a vehicle, police said in Sunday.'s news bulletin. The driver has been described as an older white male, police said.

PHOTO: A black SUV drives in a North Carolina parking lot where police say it struck six migrant workers, in a photo released on July 31, 2023, by the Lincolnton Police Department, which requested public help in identifying the driver.
A black SUV drives in a North Carolina parking lot where police say it struck six migrant workers, in a photo released on July 31, 2023, by the Lincolnton Police Department, which requested public help in identifying the driver.
Lincolnton Police Department

The victims were migrant workers who work for an orchard about 30 minutes away from Lincolnton, according to Greene. He said the migrants had been shopping and were gathered around a bus he believed made a trip to the shopping area almost every weekend.

Authorities are looking for the public’s help in identifying both the driver and the vehicle. Several security video screengrabs showing the vehicle were posted on the police department’s Facebook page on Sunday.

"We are just trying to run down leads right now. We are getting some tips, not as many as we’d like to have…everybody’s very busy. Of course, this is a priority,” Greene said Monday.

ABC News' Armando Garcia contributed to this report.

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