18-year-old Mormon missionary on bicycle killed in tragic hit-and-run in Charlotte
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — An 18-year-old missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was killed in a hit-and-run accident Thursday in north Charlotte.
The victim has been identified as Elder Aleki Langi, who had recently begun his missionary service. According to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, the deadly accident occurred just after 5 p.m. in the 1400 block of Beatties Ford Road.
Authorities said a driver lost control of their vehicle for unknown reasons, veered onto the sidewalk, and struck two missionaries and a third companion.
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The driver then fled the scene, leaving behind a devastating and chaotic aftermath.
Elder Langi was pronounced dead at the scene. Another missionary, a 19-year-old young man, sustained minor injuries and was treated at a local hospital before being released. A third missionary companion was not hurt, officials said.
Sam Penrod, a spokesman for the Church, confirmed the loss in a statement:
'It is with much sadness that we share with you that a tragic accident in North Carolina has claimed the life of a young missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Elder Aleki Langi, 18, was killed on Thursday, May 1, 2025, after the driver of a car apparently lost control and veered onto the sidewalk. A second missionary was also hit, sustaining minor injuries… We extend our deepest condolences and love to Elder Langi's family, friends, and fellow missionaries during this difficult time.'
Elder Langi, a member of the Magna 2nd Ward in the Salt Lake Utah West Stake, had begun his missionary service in March 2025. He was temporarily assigned to the North Carolina Charlotte Mission while awaiting a visa to serve in the Jamaica Kingston Mission.
The CMPD has classified the incident as a felony hit-and-run. The suspect, described only as an unknown Black male, fled the scene in a vehicle after the crash. Police have not released additional details about the suspect or made any arrests as of Friday afternoon.
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Eyewitnesses described Thursday's scene, with bystanders rushing to help the injured.
'We all took off down the street to see what we could do to assist,' said Tracy Setzer, who works at a nearby business. 'There was a horrific scene, children in the car, all the bags were deployed, glass everywhere.'
Beatties Ford Road was closed in both directions for several hours Thursday evening as authorities conducted their investigation, but has since reopened.
The investigation into the hit-and-run remains active, and CMPD urges anyone with information to come forward.Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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I am staring at the man accused of raping and murdering my sister, Vickie, in August 1979. She was 28. I can see him, but he can't see me. We are connected by video. He is dressed in an orange jumpsuit, sitting in a Maryland jailhouse holding room waiting for his bail hearing to begin. I am alone in a hotel room, on a business trip to New York. I am taken aback by his appearance. He was 18 in 1979. Now 62, he looks years older, agitated, eyes darting. He is Black — like me, like Vickie. I can feel my chest tightening, sweat accumulating on my forehead. Vickie's death left me with my own boogeyman. A faceless presence never far from my side. I saw real and imagined threats everywhere. My life was bifurcated into the before and the after. I lugged around survivor's baggage — sorrow, guilt and fear. And now there he is: The boogeyman has a face and a name: Andre Taylor. And, most important, genetic markers. 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For almost 60 minutes, he denies having any contact with Vickie, and then he admits to what the prosecutors will call 'actions that amounted to rape.' 'I had sex with her to quiet her down. She was nicely dressed with nice expensive shoes. I remember those shoes. Dressed like she worked in an office or something.' He deadpans, 'She was alive when I was done with her.' In the closing argument, the prosecutor connects the dots. There was no Mikey. All the evidence points to the fact that Vickie was abducted, taken to the woods a few miles from where Taylor lived, sexually assaulted and murdered. The DNA implicates Taylor and Taylor alone. It takes the jury two hours to come back with a verdict: guilty. As they file out of the courtroom, several of them make eye contact. I silently mouth 'thank you.' :: A month later, I return to the courtroom for Taylor's sentencing. Family members are given the opportunity to make statements. We are instructed to direct our comments to the judge, not Taylor. Vickie's son speaks first. I keep my remarks short, reminding the court of the brutality of the crime, how scared Vickie must have been, and how Taylor had shown no remorse for his actions. When it is my youngest sister's turn, she first apologizes to the judge for ignoring his instructions, then turns to Taylor, and says what I wish I had had the nerve to say: ' You are a piece of trash.' She accepts the judge's reprimand and leaves the courtroom. Taylor is sentenced to life in prison. 'My actions today won't bring Vickie back,' the judge says. 'It probably won't even provide closure. But I hope it will bring you some sense of justice and peace.' Maybe one day it will. But not this day. I leave the courtroom feeling the loss of a sister — no justice, no peace. Judy Belk, former president and chief executive of the California Wellness Foundation, is a frequent contributor to The Times. She is at work on a book of personal essays about racial justice and social change.
