'You left me on the ground': Boy knocked to ground after vehicle speeds through intersection in Niagara
Police are still searching for the driver of a vehicle that sped through a stop sign in Niagara Region last week and hit a bike being ridden by an 11-year-old child, knocking him to the ground before leaving the scene.
The incident occurred around 2 p.m. on June 11, near Confederation Avenue and Richmond Street in the City of Thorold.
Niagara Regional Police posted the video to social media Thursday afternoon.
In what appears to be dashboard footage from another vehicle, a car speeds through a stop sign at a residential four-way intersection as a child is biking through the crosswalk.
The vehicle appears to clip the bike, hitting its front wheel while it drives by. The child falls off the bike and tumbles towards the side of the road.
The Grade 6 student, identified by his mother as Nik Couture, sustained scratches and bruises to his arms and legs, but was otherwise physically unharmed. He told CTV News Toronto that a university student and some neighbours came to help him and gave him a cell phone to call his mom.
“I was telling her, I ran over to her and I hugged her and I was bawling my eyes out. I was crying and I got hit by a car and the guy didn’t stop.”
The boy’s mother was around the corner driving home from a friend’s house when she received the call. She said that when she arrived, her son’s bike was still in the middle of the road.
“You hit a child or anybody in that matter you stop. You make sure they are okay. You bring them home. You call the police. You be a human. You don’t just drive off,” Rieanna Couture said, adding that when she saw video of the incident, she “broke down and started crying.”
“Watching that video and my son telling me what happened are two different things. You know, kids always dramatize the story right, but watching that video, having that video of your child being struck by a car is a whole new level.”
Nik Couture said that while he understands if the car accidentally hit his bike, the driver should have stopped to help him.
“I get it if you accidentally hit my bike and help me up and try to call my mom and maybe walk me home, but you left me on the ground,” he said.
Nik Couture, 11, and his mother Rieanna Couture are seen in this photograph taken on June 18, 2021. (John Musselman/CTV News Toronto)
The boy said the steering on his bike is damaged, but he is just happy he was able to go home that day and hug his mom.
With files from CTV News Toronto's John Musselman
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.