Janyne Renee Mbeng Obituary-Authorities have identified Janyne Renee Mbeng, 37, as the Cayce, South Carolina, woman who died after being struck by a vehicle in a hit-and-run collision on Frink Street.
The Lexington County Coroner’s Office publicly identified Mbeng on September 1, bringing renewed attention to a case that investigators have been working to solve since the early morning hours of August 23.
According to authorities, Mbeng was walking in the roadway in the 1800 block of Frink Street shortly before 3:30 a.m. when she was struck by an unknown vehicle.
The driver did not stop.
Mbeng was transported to an area hospital, where she later died from the injuries she suffered.
More than a week after the collision, police are still trying to determine who was behind the wheel.
Investigators are now reviewing surveillance footage, analyzing evidence and asking anyone who knows what happened to come forward.
Janyne Mbeng Was Struck Early on August 23
The fatal collision happened during the early morning hours of Sunday, August 23.
Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher said Mbeng was walking in the roadway on Frink Street when a vehicle struck her.
The crash occurred shortly before 3:30 a.m.
Instead of remaining at the scene and reporting what happened, authorities said the driver left.
Mbeng was still alive following the initial impact.
Emergency responders transported her to a hospital, but her injuries proved fatal.
She was pronounced dead as a result of injuries suffered in the collision.
Authorities later classified the incident as a hit-and-run investigation.
Driver Did Not Stop or Report Collision
The driver’s actions following the crash have become a central part of the investigation.
According to the Lexington County Coroner’s Office and Cayce police, the person driving the vehicle did not stop at the scene.
Authorities also said the collision was not reported by the driver.
That left investigators searching for both the vehicle and the person who had been operating it.
Hit-and-run cases can present additional challenges for law enforcement because investigators do not begin with one of the most important pieces of information normally available after a serious crash: the identity of the driver.
Instead, detectives may have to reconstruct that information from physical evidence, witnesses and cameras.
That is the process currently underway in Cayce.
Who Was Janyne Renee Mbeng?
Janyne Renee Mbeng was 37 years old and lived in Cayce.
An official funeral listing confirms her death on August 23 and identifies Bostick-Tompkins Funeral Home in Columbia as the funeral provider handling arrangements.
Beyond those confirmed details, relatively little verified biographical information about Mbeng has been released publicly.
That makes restraint particularly important.
The circumstances of her death are public because authorities are searching for a driver.
Her entire personal life is not.
An obituary should distinguish between those two things.
Mbeng lived 37 years before the events on Frink Street brought her name into local news reports.
There were relationships, experiences and memories from those years that belong primarily to the people who knew her.
Police Chief Calls for Answers and Accountability
Cayce Police Chief Bruce Wade acknowledged the devastating impact the case has had on Mbeng’s loved ones.
He said investigators are working to identify the vehicle and driver responsible for leaving the scene.
The department has also urged people not to dismiss information simply because it appears insignificant.
That message is common in unresolved hit-and-run investigations for an important reason.
A witness may not have seen the actual impact.
But they may have seen a vehicle traveling through the area around the relevant time.
Someone may remember unusual damage on a vehicle afterward.
A nearby camera may have captured headlights, a license plate or the direction a vehicle traveled.
Individually, those details can appear small.
Together, they can solve a case.
Investigators Reviewing Surveillance Footage
One of the most important developments in the investigation is the review of surveillance footage.
Police are examining available video from around the time of the collision as they attempt to identify the vehicle involved.
Authorities had not released a confirmed description of the vehicle in the latest information available.
That means investigators may still be working to narrow down its make, model, color or other identifying characteristics.
Video evidence could become crucial.
A camera does not necessarily need to capture the collision itself.
Footage showing vehicles entering or leaving the area during a specific time window can help investigators eliminate possibilities.
Once detectives identify a likely vehicle, additional evidence can potentially connect it to a driver.
Three Agencies Working the Case
The investigation involves more than one law enforcement agency.
Cayce Police Department investigators are working alongside the South Carolina Highway Patrol and the Lexington County Coroner’s Office.
Each agency can contribute a different part of the investigation.
The coroner’s office establishes information surrounding the death.
Crash investigators can analyze physical evidence from the roadway.
Police detectives can pursue witnesses, surveillance footage and leads concerning the driver.
Cooperation becomes particularly important when the vehicle itself has not yet been located.
Until investigators find it, they may have limited physical evidence from the vehicle to compare with evidence recovered from the scene.
Why Leaving a Fatal Crash Complicates an Investigation
When drivers remain at the scene of serious collisions, investigators can immediately identify them.
They can inspect the vehicle.
They can obtain statements.
They can document damage.
They can determine whether additional testing or evidence is necessary.
A hit-and-run removes those immediate opportunities.
Investigators must first solve the question of who left before they can fully examine that person’s role in the collision.
That delay can also affect a grieving family.
Instead of receiving a complete explanation, relatives are left knowing that someone may possess important information about their loved one’s final moments but has not come forward.
For Mbeng’s family, that uncertainty continues.
Frink Street Becomes Center of Fatal Investigation
The crash occurred in the 1800 block of Frink Street in Cayce.
The area sits between major roads used by residents traveling through this part of Lexington County.
At approximately 3:30 in the morning, traffic would have been much lighter than during daytime hours.
That can create both advantages and difficulties for investigators.
Fewer vehicles may make it easier to isolate a suspicious vehicle on surveillance footage.
But fewer people on the road can also mean fewer eyewitnesses.
Investigators are therefore asking anyone who was in the area around the time of the collision to think carefully about what they may have observed.
Funeral Arrangements Announced for Janyne Mbeng
Funeral arrangements have now been scheduled for Janyne Mbeng.
A viewing is scheduled for Friday, September 4, from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. at Bostick-Tompkins Funeral Home in Columbia.
Her funeral service is scheduled for Saturday, September 5, at 10 a.m.
The arrangements give family members, friends and others who knew Mbeng an opportunity to gather and remember her.
The timing also creates a painful contrast.
While loved ones prepare to say goodbye, investigators are still searching for the person who drove away after the collision.
The funeral may provide some form of communal farewell.
It cannot provide the answers the investigation has yet to produce.
The Difference Between an Accident and Leaving the Scene
Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher has described Mbeng’s death as resulting from a pedestrian-versus-vehicle accident.
That terminology concerns the collision itself.
The decision to leave the scene is a separate issue under investigation.
It is important not to assume facts authorities have not established.
Investigators have not publicly said whether the initial impact could have been avoided.
They have not announced whether speed, distraction, impairment or another factor contributed.
They have said the driver failed to stop and report the collision.
Those are the facts currently available.
The evidence will determine what legal consequences, if any, follow once the driver is identified.
Community Assistance Could Break the Case
Police are continuing to ask the public for help.
Someone may know who was driving.
Someone may know of a vehicle that suddenly appeared with unexplained damage after August 23.
A repair shop could have encountered a vehicle with damage consistent with a pedestrian collision.
A resident may have home surveillance footage they have not yet reviewed.
A driver passing through Frink Street may have dash-camera footage stored on a device.
The person who provides the decisive information may not even realize yet that they possess it.
That is why investigators continue asking people to come forward.
Janyne Mbeng’s Family Deserves Answers
For law enforcement, the case is an investigation.
For Mbeng’s family, it is personal.
Someone they knew and loved left home and never returned.
She was struck by a vehicle.
She suffered injuries serious enough to cause her death.
And the person driving that vehicle left the scene.
Families dealing with hit-and-run deaths often face two simultaneous forms of grief.
There is grief over the death itself.
Then there is frustration over unanswered questions.
Identifying the driver will not reverse what happened.
But it can provide information that the family does not currently have.
A Life Should Not Be Reduced to a Hit-and-Run
Because Mbeng became publicly known through the investigation, most information appearing alongside her name currently concerns the collision.
That is unavoidable in breaking news.
But it is incomplete.
Janyne Renee Mbeng was 37 years old.
Thirty-seven years contain far more than the final hours of one morning.
There were people she knew.
Places she visited.
Ordinary days.
Celebrations.
Difficult periods.
Private jokes.
Relationships.
Memories that cannot be reconstructed from a police report.
The people attending her viewing and funeral will know those parts of her life.
For them, she will not simply be “the woman killed on Frink Street.”
She will be Janyne.
Search for Driver Continues as Funeral Approaches
The investigation and the family’s mourning are now moving forward at the same time.
On one side, police are reviewing surveillance video, examining evidence and pursuing leads.
On the other, Mbeng’s loved ones are preparing for her funeral.
The two processes have different goals.
Investigators want to establish what happened and identify the person who left.
Her family must learn how to continue after her death.
There is no guarantee those timelines will align.
The funeral could take place before an arrest.
The investigation could continue afterward.
What matters now is that reliable information reaches the detectives working the case.
Authorities Ask Anyone With Information to Come Forward
Police have emphasized that even seemingly minor information could help investigators reconstruct the events surrounding Mbeng’s death.
The collision occurred shortly before 3:30 a.m. on August 23 in the 1800 block of Frink Street.
Anyone who traveled through the area around that time could potentially have relevant information.
Investigators are particularly interested in identifying the vehicle and driver.
Until that happens, a major question surrounding Janyne Mbeng’s death remains unanswered.
Her family knows where she was struck.
They know when it happened.
They know the injuries killed her.
What they do not yet know is who drove away.
For a family preparing to bury a loved one, that is an answer that matters.
Disclaimer
This article is based on information released by the Lexington County Coroner’s Office, the Cayce Police Department, funeral information and verified reporting available at the time of publication.
Authorities have confirmed that Janyne Renee Mbeng, 37, died after being struck by a vehicle on Frink Street in Cayce on August 23, 2026. Investigators say the driver did not stop at the scene or report the collision.
The driver had not been publicly identified in the latest information reviewed for this article. No individual should be accused of involvement without confirmation from investigators. The complete circumstances surrounding the initial collision, including any contributing factors, remain subject to the ongoing investigation.
Personal biographical and family details not confirmed through reliable sources have intentionally been excluded. Funeral arrangements and additional information may change and should be confirmed through the family or funeral provider. This article may be updated as new verified information becomes available.