SURPRISE, Ariz. — The Surprise Police Department is looking for a motorist who injured a 12-year-old boy Thursday evening and then left the scene.
Bridger Benner said he was riding his bike home from a park after playing basketball around 6 p.m. on August 22. He was in the crosswalk near 175th Avenue and West Paradise Lane when a car struck him.
"I would expect it to just slow down as I was crossing but it didn't," Benner said.
Bridger blacked out, but remembers waking up in the middle of the street all alone.
"It wasn't just a little tap and bump and fall over, this bike was dragged under this person's car, broke in half, threw him so far," Lisa Benner, Bridger's mom, said.
The family estimates Bridger was thrown about 25 feet. His bike flew even further.
"For a bike to go that far, for Bridger, his weight, to go that far, it just doesn't make any sense for them to be going the speed limit," Mason Benner, Bridger's dad, said.
Surprise Police said their attempt to locate additional videos or photos of the incident were unsuccessful, making the search for the driver challenging.
"Very difficult, and we're going to require our community to step in and help with this one," Surprise Police Public Information Specialist Christopher Thomas said.
Police said the suspect's car was described as a dark gray Toyota Camry, possibly made after 2018. The vehicle should be missing its front-right passenger mirror and have front-end damage from the crash.
Bridger's injuries are serious, but he's expected to make a full recovery.
Bridger and his family are grateful he was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.
"I've always worn a helmet no matter what," Bridger said.
"I can't imagine what kind of people would drive away from that and leave somebody just laying in the road," Lisa Benner said.
Anyone with information about the hit-and-run crash can call Surprise police at 623-222-4000 or 623-222-TIPS (8477).
UP TO SPEED
How big is Maricopa County?
Maricopa County is the United States’ 4th largest county in terms of population with 4,485,414 people, according to the 2020 Census.
The county contains around 63% of Arizona’s population and is 9,224 square miles. That makes the county larger than seven U.S. states (Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).
One of the largest park systems in the nation is also located in Maricopa County. The county has an estimated 120,000 acres of open space parks that includes hundreds of miles of trails, nature centers and campgrounds.
The county’s seat is located in Phoenix, which is also the state capital and the census-designated 5th most populous city in the United States.
The county was named after the Maricopa, or Piipaash, Native American Tribe.
Silent Witness:
Arizona's Silent Witness program allows people to send in tips and share information about crimes happening within their local communities.
The program shares unsolved felony case information in multiple ways, including TV, radio and social media.
Anyone who has information on a crime or recognizes a suspect described by the program is asked to call 480-948-6377, go to the program's website online or download the Silent Witness app to provide a tip. The identity of anyone who submits a tip is kept anonymous.
Calls to Silent Witness are answered 24/7 by a live person and submitted tips are accepted at all times. Submitted tips are then sent to the detective(s) in charge of the specific case.
Individuals who submit tips that lead to an arrest or indictment in the case can get a reward of up to $1,000.