Family Of Child Killed By Hit-And-Run Driver: 'Turn Yourself In'
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The search is on for a driver who hit and killed a nine-year-old boy, then drove away.
CBS 2's Jeremy Ross has the story from Broadway near 80/94 in Gary, Indiana where it happened.
It's a high traffic area. On Sunday night, that traffic included police and first responders. It's a tragedy for one Gary family who shockingly found out about the death firsthand.
Around 10:00 Sunday night, 9-year-old Markese Jones was riding his bike in the area of Broadway with his brother and two other friends. The family said they were on their way to get food, when a car violently interrupted those plans.
"They were swerving, driving fast and they hit Markese," said his grandmother Terlisa Jones.
"I was so hurt, like not my little brother. This can't be true. It's real and it's happening," said his sister, Tiarra Jones.
Police said a Buick with tinted windows and black rims was heading north on Broadway, when it hit Markese, who was riding south in the northbound lanes. The driver of the Buick did not stop, and fled onto the westbound ramp to Interstate 80/94.
Markese died at the scene. A young boy who loved playing football and the video game Fortnite, now the victim of a fatal hit-and-run.
"I was there before the ambulance and police came," said Jones' grandmother Terlisa, who added that she happened to be taking her granddaughters to a restaurant when she stumbled across her loved one in a state of crisis.
"I seen my grandson laid in a puddle of blood though the head," Jones said. "I'm hollering 'that's my grandson!' I thought I could wake him up, but I knew he was down."
The car that struck Markese hasn't been seen since and police are in the process of trying to find out who would leave a 9-year-old to die in the street. The family is asking the same question and also asking for answers and for a measure of closure.
"If you did it, turn yourself in so we can be in peace," Terlisa said.
Police said anyone who witnessed the hit-and-run, or who might have information on the driver, should call 219-881-1209. Anonymous tips also can be submitted at 866-CRIME-GP (866-274-6347).
