SELAH, Wash. — A former Yakima woman shot in the head on Interstate 82 early this morning died about 2:45 p.m. at Yakima Regional Medical and Cardiac Center, Yakima County sheriff’s detectives say.

Sheryl Huntley, 40, was living in Thompson Falls, Mont.  She was a former Yakima resident and still has relatives here.

The woman’s common-law husband told detectives they were shot by a hitchhiker on Interstate 82 north of Selah. The man was hit in the hand.

The couple had been headed here to pick up a relative and return with her to Montana, said Stew Graham, chief of detectives for the sheriff’s office.

Investigators are asking for the public’s help to identify and locate the hitchhiker.

A news release from the sheriff’s office gave this account:

Yakima police learned of the incident about 3:30 a.m. when they stopped a vehicle at South First Street and Walnut Avenue.

The driver, who was not identified by authorities, said he had picked up the hitchhiker south of the southbound rest area, north of Selah, and was then robbed.

Although details are unclear, the driver tried to stop the car and struggle with the hitchhiker, who fired several shots at the man and his wife.

The hitchhiker got out of the car somewhere between the East Selah and Rest Haven exits.

The driver proceeded to Yakima and then to Union Gap before turning around on South First Street, where he flagged down another motorist to help him find a hospital. The man told detectives he was not familiar with the area and did not have a phone.

The other motorist called 9-1-1, prompting police to stop the car.

The hitchhiker was described as Hispanic, probably around 20, about 5 feet, 6 inches and skinny. His head was shaved, with a longer bit of hair across the forehead, a scar over his left eye and a “sharp” jaw line.  His nose may have been broken in the past. He was wearing a red bandanna, white T-shirt, navy blue Dickies pants and two diamond stud earrings.

Besides identifying the hitchiker, detectives say they would like to speak with anyone who saw the man’s small sedan before it was stopped by police. The man said he was driving erratically to attract attention and may have been involved in a minor, unreported crash with another vehicle before the traffic stop.

Anyone with information about this case may call the sheriff’s office at 509-574-2500.

-- Mark Morey