Calvin Adkins
Sports Editor
May 21, 2008 10:48 am
—
A routine grass-cutting chore turned out to be a nightmare for a Edgecombe County man Tuesday and investigators are looking for the suspect who caused it.
While mowing on a riding lawnmower, Ellis Cullifer, 66, was struck by a truck around 4:15 p.m. Tuesday at his new business, Culli's Grocery & Grill, at the intersection of N.C. 97 and U.S. 258 in the Lawrence community.
According to Trooper Lynn Porcher', Cullifer was mowing the grass about 10-15 feet off the roadway when a black truck driving west on N.C. 97 turned left into Culli's Grocery & Grill driveway and struck Culliffer on the left side.
The suspect continued through a field before turning back on N.C. 97 and headed west. A witness described the vehicle as a black Z21 truck with a toolbox on the back. Law enforcement officers patroling the surrounding area but did not find the truck.
"This was an unusal accident," Porcher' said. "Mr. Cullifer was doing what he supposed to have done – he wasn't on the highway. I'm not sure why someone would cross all the way over like that unless that person was drunk or that person did it intentional. We will not be able to find out until we find the suspect."
A hospital spokesman at Heritage Hospital in Tarboro said Cullifer was admitted and released early today. The trooper said he had a broken kneecap.
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