A cyclist in Oakland was killed earlier this week in a hit-and-run collision with a car that at least one eyewitness has said appeared intentional.
On the evening of July 4, Oakland police came across a man in his 40s who had been riding his bicycle near the intersection of 81st Avenue and International Boulevard when he was fatally struck by an automobile.
Lashawn Harris, a witness who saw the crash occur, told KTVU he believed it be intentional on the part of the driver. "They saw him. They saw him," Harris insisted. "It was intentional."
Not only did the witness claim that the driver accelerated, but skid marks on the street indicate that the driver may have targeted the biker prior to the collision. Police are currently investigating the incident as a felony hit-and-run.
Oakland Police Department Officer Jim Gordon told CBS San Francisco that the driver, who allegedly never made an attempt to stop, dragged the cyclist more than 100 feet.
The victim has reportedly been identified, but his name hasn't been made public.
Reports of the exact make and model of the vehicle are hazy. Police are looking at surveillance cameras from nearby stores in hopes of making a concrete identification of the perpetrator.