Police asked cyclist who was victim of brutal hit and run to track down CCTV footage himself

A cyclist who was the victim in a horrific hit and run was asked by police to track down CCTV footage himself.

Josh Dey was riding his bike on Easter Sunday (April 21) when a BMW being driven on the wrong side of the road hit him head on.

Mr Dey suffered multiple injuries including a brain bleed as the car drove away from the scene.

The 22-year-old medical student reported the incident to police, when officers asked him to track down CCTV footage of the incident himself before it was deleted.

>>> Painted cycle lanes result in more close-passes by drivers, study finds

Mr Dey, from Archway in London, told ITV News (opens in new tab): “I don’t remember anything. I only remember waking up in hospital and wondering what’s going on with needles in my arms and in a lot of pain.

“So the police said they’d send an officer more than a week after the incident.

“With the software at the restaurant [the CCTV footage] would be deleted after a week, so by the time they got there it would have been deleted.

“So they said if you can get the footage yourself that would be really helpful.

“As soon as I got out of hospital I made that my first priority.”

Mr Dey was able to track down the video, which he then shared with a local newspaper.

The crash happened on Swain’s Lane, near Hampstead Heath in north London.

Injuries Mr Dey suffered in the crash included multiple fractures to his nose, ligament damage in his knee, a bleed on the brain, a fractured toe and bruising to his left leg.

Video footage of the awful crash shows the car licence plate, Mr Dey said police told him they would send a letter to the owner to confirm who was driving the car.

>>> Sainsbury’s bike parking refusal on ‘hygiene’ grounds begs question: do customers remove their shoes? 

The Metropolitan Police is investigating the incident and added that it was grateful to Mr Dey’s help in sending him the footage, the BBC reports. (opens in new tab)

No one has been arrested.