Two local parents and their three young children are recovering after a shocking hit-run crash on the Monash Freeway earlier this week, leaving a Somerville mother with serious injuries and their family car a mangled wreck.
At around 6.10pm on Monday 7 July, police say a black BMW sedan smashed into a white Kia SUV near Malvern East, before the BMW driver heartlessly fled the scene — abandoning the disabled car in a carpark on Warragul Road.
Inside the Kia was a 35-year-old Seaford man behind the wheel, who received medical treatment at the scene, and his front passenger, a 31-year-old woman from Somerville, who was rushed to hospital with serious injuries. The couple’s three children — a four-month-old baby, a six-year-old and an eight-year-old — were also hospitalised. Fortunately, police say their injuries are not life-threatening.
Prahran Highway Patrol officers believe the BMW was being driven dangerously in the lead-up to the crash, seen speeding and weaving through traffic between High Street and Warragul Road. The impact on the freeway was so severe that the BMW lost a wheel before its driver took off on foot, leaving the family to face the devastating aftermath alone.
Police are now urgently appealing for witnesses or anyone with dash cam footage who was travelling near the Burnley Tunnel, High Street or Warragul Road between 5.50pm and 6.30pm on Monday.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
