Man in custody after girlfriend run over in Ashe Co.

ASHE COUNTY, N.C. — Authorities have taken a suspect into custody after a woman was run over in Ashe County.

Detectives said 30-year-old Jacob Edwin Johnson ran over and killed his girlfriend on N.C. 88 near Ore Valley Road, about 10 miles northeast of Jefferson early Friday. They said they believe he then got the vehicle stuck in some mud and took off on foot.

Troopers had been called to the scene on N.C. 88 at about 1 a.m. for what was reported as an accident. When they arrived, they learned the pair had been in an argument and saw damage where Johnson is accused of running a car into his girlfriend's apartment.

Troopers determined the crash scene was a crime scene. They called in the Ashe County Sheriff's Office.

Investigators said Miranda Ann Wiles, 29, was struck and killed along the roadway a short distance from where she lived with family members in an apartment next to the Jerry Midway Market store in the Laurel Springs area.

They said they found her car a quarter of a mile away stuck in the mud with one of Johnson's boots nearby.

Deputies said they are investigating it as a homicide and Johnson is a suspect.

Johnson was arrested shortly after 10:30 a.m. Friday. As he was taken in for questioning, he told Eyewitness News he was in the dark about what had happened.

"I don't know what's going on," he said. "Murder? I didn't murder nobody. Murder, what the hell?"

Johnson was taken into custody on warrants for failure to appear in court. He has a history of drug-related charges. He has not been charged in Wiles' death.

Sheriff James Williams said it's a complicated case.

"It is out of the ordinary. Usually it is a gun or a knife, but in this case it appears to be an automobile," he said.

Deputies and SBI agents were on the scene all morning collecting evidence. A Highway Patrol accident reconstruction team is also assisting in the investigation.  N.C. 88 was closed for nearly 12 hours for the investigation.

Many in the rural community who knew the couple said they can't believe what happened.

"It makes me sick to my stomach. (Johnson) has had a rough life. I just hate it so bad," said resident Shirley Mabe.

WSOC