Berea man recounts hit and run

BEREA resident, Luke Martinovic has warned pedestrians in the area to be wary of motorists after he was injured while crossing Keits Avenue, near King Dinuzulu Road.

Martinovic said he was left with cuts and bruises when he was hit by a motorist recently.

“At the traffic light, I watched to see if it was safe to cross the road. I looked left and right and didn’t see any cars. As I began to cross the road, I heard a bang as the motorist hit me. I was still standing, but instead of waiting for me to continue walking, the motorist started to slowly drive off and the car pushed me back and I fell on the side of the road,” he said.

He said a bystander ran after the car and took down the license plate number, allowing Martinovic to report the incident at the Umbilo SAPS.

Also read: KZN SAPS arrest more than 2 000 suspects in a week

Carmen Rhynes, eThekwini District police, communications officer, confirmed that an accident report had been opened.

“The necessary steps are being done to ensure that the matter is investigated,” she said.

Rhynes said motorists involved in hit and run incidents face a fine or a sentence, depending on the circumstances of the incident.

“Any accident on a public road must be reported to a police officer at a police station within 24 hours unless the complainant is unable to do so due to injuries preventing them. Under the National Road Traffic Act, a driver involved in a road accident that seriously injures or kills anyone must report the accident to the police within 24 hours, or as soon as is reasonably possible if they unable due to injuries, ” said Rhynes.

Also read: Driver critical after Umgeni Road crash

The community is advised to take down the registration number of the vehicle if possible as well as the vehicle colour and make, the road name where the incident took place, the time and date of incident and witnesses’ names and contact numbers.

“If there are injuries a reckless and negligent crime docket will be opened and investigated. The detective assigned to the case will trace number plate ownership to ascertain who the driver was,” said Rhynes.

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