A homeless man who survived being run over while sleeping on the sidewalk along Capitol Hill’s 19th Ave E appears to have been intentionally targeted.

Seattle Police say they are investigating two similar attacks that took place within hours across Seattle early last Saturday morning that sent two people to the hospital after a driver drove onto sidewalks and struck them.

In the Capitol Hill attack, a 39-year-old man suffered lower body injuries and was rushed to Harborview after being run over while sleeping near 19th and Prospect in front of a stretch of businesses including the neighborhood’s Windermere real estate office on the block mixed with single family-style homes and a small business strip.

“The victim was asleep on the sidewalk when he was struck by a vehicle,” SPD’s brief on the February 17th, 3:50 AM incident reads. “The suspect vehicle ran over the victim’s legs and then fled the scene.”

Police say the description of the blue sedan in the 19th Ave E attack matches that of the suspect vehicle in another intentional hit and run earlier that morning around 2:45 AM on Dexter Ave N where the police said a driver sped onto the sidewalk and struck the victim before driving away. “The victim saw the vehicle coming and was able to dive out of the way and avoid being struck head on,” SPD reports.

The victim was treated at the scene by Seattle Fire and then transported to Harborview.

SPD said they are investigating the incidents and working to identify the vehicle believed to have been used in both the attacks.

The February 17th incidents come after two teens were charged earlier this month for hit and run attacks targeting pedestrians along Aurora late last year.

They also come as Seattle Police detectives are investigating the February 10th stabbing death of a homeless man in an alley off 12th Ave. Early Thursday morning, police were also investigating a suspicious death after a man was found dead outside First Hill’s Town Hall.

UPDATE: A spokesperson for SPD told CHS Thursday morning there have been no updates in the investigation.

UPDATE 2/27/2024: CHS has been told the man struck along 19th Ave E was lucky and sustained no serious injuries. SPD has not announced any updates in the cases.

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