DINWIDDIE COUNTY, Va. —- Dinwiddie County Sheriff D.T. “Duck” Adams is grieving the loss of his friend, former Dinwiddie County Commonwealth's Attorney T.O. 'Lanny' Rainey.
Rainey, 70, was killed last week while riding his bicycle on Flatfoot Road. The driver who hit Rainey did not stop.
"Very tough. It's a tragedy for this community," Sheriff Adams said about the hit-and-run that killed his friend. "This one just hits home. He’s just a special guy and he’s special to me."
To help find the driver who hit Rainey, Adams has offered $1,000 of his own money for information that leads to a conviction in this case.
"I want this case solved," he said. "I’m hoping this money will generate someone coming forward with the information we need."
Dinwiddie business owner Judy Dowdy called Rainey one of the greatest men she had ever met.
She planned to start a reward fund this week at The Bank of Southside Virginia in Dinwiddie.
"We really looking for a grand amount of money and we’re going to get it. And then we’re going to get the person," Dowdy said about her efforts to catch the hit-and-run driver.
She raised money years ago to help close an unsolved murder. After the suspect in that unsolved murder died, the money sat untouched in a bank account.
She said some of those reward funds would now be diverted to the Rainey case.
"There is some money left and I’ve already gotten permission to move that over," she said.
Virginia State Police said investigators do not yet know the color of the truck involved in the fatal hit-and-run, but part of a side view mirror left at the crash site was consistent with Nissan Frontier built between 2005 thru 2010.
Anyone with information was asked to call Virginia State Police at 804-609-5656.
This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
