The victim, Brenda Baehm, 42, attempted to purchase the pain reliever Vicodin from one of the women, a passenger in the van, at about 9:30 p.m., but they got into an argument after Baehm figured out that the pills were really Tylenol, Anchorage police said Sunday.
When Baehm walked away, the van drove forward, struck her and dragged her down the street before fleeing the neighborhood, police said. Baehm suffered major head trauma and died there, at 7505 Boundary Ave.
Witnesses in the neighborhood called police, who less than five hours later arrested two suspects on felony charges. Both women arrested have criminal records, according to a court records search.
The driver, Cora Williams, 37, told detectives that she didn't mean to hit Baehm, police spokeswoman Anita Shell said.
Williams was charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide, police said. Her bail was set at $500,000.
In 2006, Williams was found guilty of multiple counts of driving under the influence with a child in her vehicle, court records show.
The passenger, Sarah Savage-Williams, 37, was charged with manufacture or delivery of an imitation controlled substance, a Class C felony. Her bail was set at $10,000.
Savage-Williams' criminal record includes forgery, assault, theft, attempt to escape and false statements, court records show.
Police said they found the two suspects with some help from Baehm's son, who was listening on a cell phone while his mom talked to the women in the van.
Baehm's son told police that he didn't know the women in the van but he was able to figure out who they were by calling other people, Shell said.
Witnesses in the neighborhood also assisted police with a detailed description of the vehicle: a two-tone blue van with a blown-out window covered with plastic sheeting, Shell said.
At 2 a.m. Sunday, officers found the van and the two suspects at a home on Chena Drive.
The police confiscated 97 pills in an unmarked bottle, and the pills did turn out to be Tylenol, Shell said.
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