CUMBERLAND — The Allegany County Sheriff’s Office responded quickly Wednesday to altered photos appearing on social media of a vehicle that fled the scene of a hit and run accident in LaVale that killed a Cumberland woman.
Tuesday night, photos appearing to be AI generated clearly identifying a license plate and a person in the driver seat were posted by Cumberland on Patrol Raw, a Facebook page that “covers live scanner calls, crime and current events.”
“Those photos are not accurate,” Sgt. Christopher Hill said Wednesday morning. “The photos released to the Times-News are accurate.”
Information released Tuesday regarding the July 6 crash that killed Tina M. Gillespie, 54, of Cumberland, included an image of a light-colored Subaru investigators are attempting to identify. The surveillance image, captured at BP gas station on National Highway, is grainy, the license plate isn’t legible and a driver isn’t identifiable.
Investigators believe that Gillespie was initially struck by a vehicle as she crossed Campground Road around 9 p.m. The drivers of two other vehicles did not see her lying in the roadway and also struck her.
Cpl. Andy Plummer said sheriff’s office investigators were attempting to locate one of the vehicles that struck Gillaspie but left the scene of the accident.
“We do not believe the operator of the third vehicle to be at fault, but it is a crime in the state of Maryland to leave the scene of an accident with injury,” Pummer said.
The Subaru is likely a 2008 or newer model, investigators said.
“The fabricated post by Cumberland on Patrol Raw is actively harming the integrity of this ongoing investigation and creating unnecessary obstacles for law enforcement,” Lt. Brett Lysinger said.
Hill said the sheriff’s office released the images to the newspaper asking for the public’s help in identifying the vehicle.
“It is important when law enforcement reaches out to the pubic in matters such as this that the information remain accurate and unaltered,” Hill said. “This is why the sheriff’s office uses trained public information officers and press releases.”
Hill said numerous agencies — state, local and federal — are attempting to clarify the picture to identify the driver.
The sheriff’s office asks anyone with information on the case to call the office at 301-777-1585.
Harder to correct
On Monday, the Allegany County Health Department had to correct misinformation from a Keyser on Patrol Facebook post reporting a threatening incident at the health department that included a law enforcement response.
“Please be advised that the post is completely false and there has been no incident or law enforcement response at the health department,” a press release said.
“It is important with issues related to public safety and public health that people are vetting the information they get and using trusted sources,” Brenda Caldwell, the department’s public information officer, said. “One little bit of false information can cause panic and harm. We were concerned when we found out it was circulating, we wanted to make sure the public got the correct information.”
The Keyser on Patrol page has since been removed.
“When you get information from social media, make sure it is correct,” Caldwell said. “The more it’s shared, the harder it is to correct misinformation.”