SOMERVILLE, Mass. — A 14-year-old struck by a pick-up truck while riding his mini-bike Sunday night is urging the hit-and-run driver to turn himself in.
Gage Jennings was hit from behind and thrown from the bike, rolling into the intersection at Mystic Ave. and Wheatland Street around 8:30 p.m., surveillance video from a nearby store shows.
Gage can be seen scrambling to the side of the road, while his friend, who was on a pedal bike behind him, pulls the mini-bike aside, only for the driver of the truck to drive away, never checking on Gage.
“’Fess up, and show who you are,” Gage said of his message to the driver. “It could’ve went [sic] way worse. I could’ve possibly died.”
Shortly after the incident, Gage called his mother, Jessica Fernandes, who was at their home a couple of blocks away.
“My heart sank. I was so scared,” Fernandes said. “When he told me, ‘Hey, someone hit me,’ I ran right down there.”
A woman who witnessed the crash stayed with Gage and called 911, Fernandes said.
But no one was able to get a clear license plate or a detailed description of the driver.
Massachusetts State Police are investigating the hit-and-run, asking anyone with information to come forward.
Gage declined transport by first responders but later went to the hospital for evaluation.
He was released with scrapes and bruises.
“I’m very grateful,” Fernandes said of her son’s condition. “He definitely had someone looking out for him.”
While the driver had a green light when attempting to take a left turn before the crash, Fernandes wants to know why they hit her son and especially why they fled.
“He knows what he did. I really feel he should turn himself in,” Fernandes said. “I’m furious. I don’t know how you could hit someone, a child, rather, and just take off and not care and not even check to see if he was okay.”
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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