An cyclist who was allegedly knocked off his bike by a “reckless” driver who then sped off said he was stunned he survived, as police make an appeal for help finding the motorist.
Robert Clarke, 59, was cycling along Douglas Street in Dandenong, in Melbourne’s south-east, at 6.40am on Thursday April 13.
The footage appears to show a white 2008-2017 Mitsubishi Lancer stop on the road to let Clarke pass.
But it then appears to accelerate towards him before mounting the the kerb to hit him, police claim.
Clarke falls from his bike in the footage, with the cycle dragged along by the car which doesn’t stop.
Clarke, from Pakenham, sits stunned on the road.
He was in tears as he recounted the ordeal which was caught on dashcam.
“I could just see things flashing past, me as I’m tumbling and then I stopped,” he said.
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“It was just this realisation, ‘I’m still here’, that’s the first thing.”
He suffered nasty cuts and bruises, with police saying he was lucky not to be badly hurt.
Sgt Jerome Ithier from Victoria Police, who are appealing for help finding the driver, said any motorist behaving like that “should not be on our roads”.
“This sort of behaviour is dangerous, it’s reckless, and it’s just fortunate that no one was killed or seriously injured,” Ithier said.
The car didn’t have number plates and could have been stolen.
It was last seen driving north-west through the Douglas Street and Heatherton Road intersection.
Anyone who witnessed the collision, has CCTV or dashcam footage should contact Crimestoppers.
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