Hit-run driver flees after fatally striking woman in Melbourne’s south-east

A driver has handed himself in to police hours after an elderly woman was allegedly mowed down and left for dead early on Tuesday morning.

Major collision detectives descended on Frankston-Flinders Road, near Highland Drive in Frankston South, after reports that a vehicle had hit a pedestrian about 5.30am. The 83-year-old local woman died at the scene.

The vehicle involved, which police believe to be a dark-coloured SUV, then allegedly fled the scene, travelling west on Frankston-Flinders Road.

Just five hours after the collision, a 55-year-old man contacted police and was arrested in nearby Seaford. Police said he would be interviewed by detectives.

“The investigation into the exact circumstances surrounding the incident is ongoing,” police said.

Earlier, Detective Sergeant Mark Amos from the major collision investigation unit said it was possible that the woman had been lying on the road when she was struck.

“Someone has hit her. We’re still investigating whether or not she was upstanding or if she was in fact lying on the road,” he told ABC Radio Melbourne.

“Those sorts of answers will come to us in the course of time, but certainly, whoever was driving the car involved in it would have known they’ve hit something.

“That’s essentially our appeal for anybody that was in the Frankston-Flinders Road area heading towards Frankston. If you’re involved or if you know something about it, contact police straight away.”

He said the woman had since been identified, and officers had informed her family.

“One of the worst jobs you’ve ever got to do in policing is to go and knock on the door of a home and tell a family that their loved one has passed away as a result of a collision on the roads,” he said.

Anyone who witnessed the collision, has dashcam or CCTV, or anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au .

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