Lyft drive from Dewey Beach turns deadly after disagreement ends with rider fatally hit

What started out as a ride home via a popular ride-hailing service turned deadly early Sunday for a man from the Washington metropolitan area.

At 1:44 a.m. Sunday, a group of six people hired a driver through the Lyft app to take them from Dewey Beach to Bethany Beach, according to Delaware State Police. A vehicle, thought to be a white Honda Pilot, arrived and picked up all six passengers, police said.

As they traveled south on Coastal Highway, a disagreement occurred between the group and the Lyft driver, according to police. The Lyft driver then ended the ride, stopped in the middle of the southbound left lane and demanded all six passengers get out of the vehicle, police said.

At this time, a 27-year-old man driving a 2016 Toyota Corolla south on Coastal Highway saw the Lyft vehicle stopped in the travel lane, police said. He changed lanes to avoid hitting the back of the Lyft vehicle, police said, but failed to see the pedestrian, Sidney Wolf, who had "exited the right rear passenger seat and was standing in the roadway," resulting in the rider being hit.

After the impact, the Corolla driver pulled to the side of the road and the Lyft driver drove off, according to police.

Wolf, a 43-year-old man from Clarksburg, Maryland, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The other five passengers were not injured after exiting the Lyft vehicle, according to police.

Neither the Lyft driver nor the vehicle in which the group was riding has been identified. Police said this incident remains under investigation.

Contact reporter Anitra Johnson at ajohnson@delawareonline.com or 302-379-5786 with tips and story ideas. Become a subscriber to access more stories and the best in local reporting.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware Lyft ride from Dewey Beach ends with conflict, rider killed