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A WHEELCHAIR footballer has said it’s a miracle he is still alive after he was thrown into the air in a terrifying hit-run.
Judeland Antony suffered a broken pelvis and hand and a serious spinal cord injury after being struck while crossing Bourke St in Docklands at 1.20pm on Tuesday.
The driver didn’t stop and was seen parking the car nearby in Latrobe St.
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He was last seen heading towards King St on foot while talking on a mobile phone.
Police on Wednesday urged the driver to hand himself in as detectives from the Fugitive Taskforce were brought in to help with the manhunt.
Mr Antony started playing wheelchair football three years ago and represented Victoria before being recruited by Richmond. He became a paraplegic after being injured in a blast in Sri Lanka in 1996.
CCTV footage shows a blue Ford hatchback hitting Mr Antony near the intersection of Cumberland St and Seafarers Lane.
The force of the crash sent Mr Antony flying into the air before sliding off the side of the car, part of the RACV’s car share fleet, and tumbling into the road.
“After seeing the footage, it could have been worse,” Mr Antony said while recovering at the Royal Melbourne Hospital on Wednesday.
“It is a miracle I’m having a chat with everyone I love.
“I had a good look at the road and when I was looking at it, I couldn’t see any cars. Then from my blind spot I saw something. It was like a nightmare.
“Lucky, I connected with the side of the car rather than the middle of the car.”
Police are investigating vehicle-booking records and have released an image of a man they wish to speak to.
He is described as caucasian, 185cm tall, with short, brown hair and blond tips, unshaven and wearing a grey T-shirt, dark-blue denim jeans and white runners.
Senior Sergeant Steven Wilson, of Melbourne Highway Patrol, urged the driver to hand himself in.
“We have got some information about who he is. But we would rather he hand himself in,” Sen-Sgt Wilson said.
“We are concerned he has had no regard for a fellow human.
“It is absolutely disgraceful that someone would leave somebody in the middle of the road after an impact of that nature and not try and render any badistance whatsoever.
“The vehicle did not stop. He just continued on. There is no way known he would not have known he had run into that pedestrian in the wheelchair.”
Police also want the person who the driver was speaking to on the phone to come forward.
“We would hope that person would contact Crime Stoppers and give us some information,” Sen-Sgt Wilson said. “We are not suggesting he was driving in any way which was dangerous.
“The simple fact is he has run into someone and he doesn’t seem to have cared about the person and, in particular, someone who is in a wheelchair. It is just absolutely disgraceful.”
Anyone with information should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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