Reports surfaced online early Saturday morning that the former ‘Blaque’ group member had been killed in a hit-and-run as she walked home from a store.
[READ: R.I.P. Natina Reed – Dead at 32 – OFFICIAL STATEMENT RELEASED]
Reports of Reed being the victim of a hit-and-run accident were soon discredited by Gwinnett County authorities police,??who confirmed that the driver of the vehicle involved in the accident stopped, called 911, and also rendered aid to Reed after the incident.
A passenger in the vehicle was also witness to the bizarre accident, that occurred on a dark stretch of Georgia highway.
Gwinnett County police would like to speak to ?anyone who might have information about anything that could help us determine why she was there, anything to help us understand how this came together,? said police spokesman Sgt. Rich Long.
?As of right now, it does not appear that the driver has any fault in this event,? said Long, who added that it was the driver who contacted police about the accident. The driver, who was not immediately identified, was not expected to be charged, the spokesman said.
Police received a call around 10:30 p.m. Friday that a woman had been struck by a red Honda Accord on Lawrenceville Highway (U.S. 29) near Hamilton Road, just north of Lilburn.
Investigators were still trying to determine why Reed was in standing in the roadway and whether she was crossing or walking alongside it.
A spokesman said CPR was performed at the scene and Reed was taken to Gwinnett Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 10:59 p.m.
Reed would have celebrated her 33rd birthday yesterday (October 28, 2012) and many are drawing eery parallels to her former mentor, Lisa “Left-Eye” Lopez’s death.
[FLASHBACK:?Lisa Lopez Would Have Turned 40 Last Year (PHOTOS + VIDEO)]
Other than the driver and a passenger in the car, it appears that there are no other additional witnesses.
?It?s kind of a dark lit area,? said Long. ?There is not really anything in that area that?s open at that time of night, that would be any kind of a draw to a person up there,? he said.
As previously stated, Reed has been plagued with drug & alcohol issues. Having been arrested at least twice in 2011 on various charges stemming from her addictions.
Reed was?arrested?in DeKalb County on April 13 and charged with violating the open container laws and disorderly conduct. She was released the next day on a $420 bond.
She was?arrested again?on June 29, 2011 in Dunwoody, a suburb West of Atlanta. She was charged with DUI and driving with a revoked license and released two days later on $2,230 bond. (source)
A spokesman for Gwinnett County authorities said more information would be released as facts become available.