Woman arrested in connection to hit and run (From Bucks Free Press)

Woman arrested in connection to hit and run

12:41pm Sunday 8th November 2009 in News By Simon Farr

Woman arrested in connection to hit and run

A WOMAN has been arrested in connection to a hit and run incident in High Wycombe which left a man in a critical condition in hospital.

The woman, who is in her twenties, has since been released on police bail.

The man was crossing the Oxford Road at the traffic lights near Sainsbury's, when the speeding van careered into him on the west bound carriageway outside the derelict Sombrero's restaurant at about 3pm on Wednesday.

A passing off-duty nurse stopped to tend to the injured man and waited with him until paramedics arrived. He was taken to Stoke Mandeville Hospital with internal injuries.

Police say the man, who is in his fifties, is still in a serious condition in hospital.

Police believe two men were in the white transit panel van, registration RY54 USN, which was being pursued in connection to a crime in Deeds Grove.

An elderly woman had called police just minutes before the incident, saying rogue traders were in her home demanding large amounts of cash.

The van was later found abandoned in the Bellfield Road industrial estate.

Witnesses at the scene said the injured man was knocked “several feet into the air” in an incident police have described as a “callous hit and run”.

Ch Insp Colin Seaton said: “I would like to offer my sincere condolences to the family.

“This was a particularly callous hit-and-run incident, which has left an innocent bystander fighting for his life.”

“Our absolute priority at the moment is to locate the perpetrators of this horrific crime and ensure that they are brought to justice.”

A witnesses at the scene, who did not wish to be named, said he was two feet away from the man when he was hit in an attack he described as a “callous disregard of human life”.

He said: “The guy went several feet up in the air, thank God the poor bloke is still alive - it's a callous disregard of another human being's life.

“I'm shocked - It could have been a child crossing the road or a mother pushing a pram and, while this isn't any better, the poor guy could have died. It's incomprehensible.”

The incident caused traffic chaos through out the town as rush hour hit, with partial road closures in place on Oxford Road for more than three hours while police investigators examined the scene.

Contact High Wycombe police on 0845 8 505 505, or the Crimestoppers charity anonymously on 0800 555 111.