When 86-year-old Genevieve Cochran learned in June that her only surviving child had been killed in a Fayetteville hit-and-run, Cochran said the news didn’t immediately penetrate.
“It was the next day before I actually understood what was happening,” Cochran said Thursday. Her comments came at a news conference called by the Fayetteville Police Department asking for the public’s help in finding a suspect in the death of Cochran’s daughter, Rebecca Dunbenit.
Dunbenit, 64, was riding a mobility scooter to walk her dog near her Cliffdale Road home about 10 p.m. on June 3 when she was struck by a motorist who left the scene, police said. The accident happened as Dunbenit crossed the street near Seaford Drive. She was pronounced dead at the hospital
Dunbenit was using the scooter after a recent leg surgery that made it uncomfortable for her to walk, police said.
Cochran, and her nephew, John Monett, shared stories about Dunbenit on Thursday at police headquarters on Hay Street. Cochran said she heard about the hit-and-run from her daughter’s landlord.