Pakenham South: Grandfather dies after hit-and-run on Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Rd
A much-loved grandfather has died in hospital after he was struck by a car and left for dead in a ditch in Pakenham South.
South East
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A grandfather has died in hospital after he was struck by a car and left for dead while riding his scooter in Pakenham South.
Don, 60, was riding his Vespa-type scooter just before 7pm on Tuesday, February 9, when he was thrown into a drainage ditch after being hit by an overtaking vehicle.
Detectives said the 60-year-old Pakenham man was taken to hospital in a critical condition but died overnight on Tuesday.
He was travelling towards Koo Wee Rup to play darts when one vehicle, which police have dubbed vehicle B, overtook his scooter and another car, dubbed vehicle A.
At the same time car B was overtaking, it’s believed car A allegedly attempted to overtake the scooter but swerved back in and struck the back of the scooter causing it to crash, police say.
Police located him unresponsive near the intersection of Healesville-Koo Wee Rup and Ballarto roads in Pakenham South.
The exact circumstances around the incident are yet to be determined and police are seeking to speak to a man they believe may have witnessed the incident.
Earlier this week detectives released footage of the vehicle they believe may have witnessed the incident, a white Toyota HiLux.
Major Collision Investigation Unit Detective Sergeant Mark Amos said in a press conference last week Don was flown to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and placed in intensive care.
Don, a father of two and grandfather of five, had only just retired from a career in bricklaying.
Sgt Amos said he was very comfortable the offending cars would have known they had struck Don.
“I just cannot fathom how you don’t stop,” he said.
“Anytime there is a hit and run, people will stop for animals, but why don’t you stop for a human being?”
Sgt Amos called on the drivers of the two vehicles to immediately come forward.
“Everybody has a story to tell. Their account is absolutely critical for us and we want to hear it,” he said.
Pakenham SES liaison unit spokesman Shayne Honey said the crash was the seventh serious crash SES had attended since the start of 2021 and fourth on this road since October 2020.
It comes after a man was killed after a head-on collision in Pakenham last week.
Paramedics were called to the multi-vehicle accident on Pakenham Rd, near Orchard Valley, where the driver of the Toyota van died at the scene.
A mother and her unborn baby were also killed in a horror crash on Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Rd in Pakenham South about 8am on February 4.
Anyone who witnessed the incident or with dashcam footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
