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A 24-year-old female driver allegedly fled the scene of car crash because she panicked after helping her 10-year-old best friend. diegoparra/Pixabay

KEY POINTS

  • The woman was driving a car with five other people when she lost control of the vehicle
  • The car rolled over several times, with three passengers being thrown out of the vehicle
  • She initially tried helping one passenger, a 10-year-old girl, but allegedly later ran away from the scene

A 24-year-old woman in Atlanta, Georgia, is facing several charges after allegedly running away from a single-car crash that killed a 10-year-old girl and her father last week.

The woman, identified as Zyria Sensley, is currently detained at the Fulton County Jail on charges of vehicular homicide and other traffic offenses, including hit and run and reckless driving, WSB-TV reported, citing police.

Sensley was behind the wheel of a 2008 Dodge Durango that was traveling down Campbellton Road just after 3 a.m. on Dec. 3 with five other people on board, according to investigators.

She was speeding down the road when she lost control of the vehicle, causing it to roll over several times, police said.

Janyla Henderson, 10, her 33-year-old father Nicholas Jeffries and a third unnamed passenger were thrown out of the car, police reports cited by the outlet said.

Janyla and her father died in the crash.

Evelyn Henderson, Janyla's mother, identified Sensley as her best friend, according to the outlet.

"She was the sweetest little girl in the world," the mother told Tom Jones of Channel 2 of her daughter. "Today, we were supposed to go vote. Me and her."

Evelyn said in the interview that on the night of the crash, Sensley was driving her, Janyla, Jeffries, her son and another friend home.

The mother said Sensley initially tried helping Janyla but allegedly ultimately ran away from the scene.

Police reports confirmed that Sensley was not at the scene when they arrived.

According to the outlet, relatives said that Rob Martin, who was injured in the crash, told them that the driver panicked.

"He said all he could hear her say was, 'I can't go to jail. I ain't going to jail, because my baby girl need me,'" the unnamed family member told Channel 2.

A vigil was held Thursday evening near the crash site out front of Greater Elizabeth Missionary Baptist Church, 11Alive reported.

"Nick was my boyfriend 10 years --10 long years," Evelyn said, according to 11Alive. "They were amazing, he was an awesome man."

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The mother gripped the last picture taken of her daughter – her fifth-grade school picture – at the vigil.

"That was my chocolate dream, now she's my chocolate angel," she said. "She was such a sweet person."

An online fundraiser has been set up in memory of 10-year-old Janyla and to help her family.

Representational image (car crash)
A 24-year-old woman is facing multiple charges for running away after a vehicular accident.