Friday, July 21st 2023, 5:18 pm
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol is searching for a hit-and-run driver who swerved into a motorcyclist on Interstate 40 last Sunday leaving the man badly injured.
The motorcyclist is offering a $5,000 reward to the tipster who can lead investigators to the identity and arrest of the hit and run driver. Reza Aryan, 62, said the driver left him for dead on a busy interstate.
“Somebody was looking out for me,” Aryan said. “I shouldn’t be here.”
Aryan said this past weekend was his first crash on a motorcycle in 50 years. He was on Interstate 40 near the Western Avenue exit when he was knocked off his bike.
“It was a Nissan, black Nissan Altima or something similar,” Aryan said. “Was driving erratically, hit me and knocked me down.” The driver never stopped.
“He left me on the asphalt for dead,” Aryan said.
Several good Samaritans stopped to help Aryan and offered Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers information for the investigation.
“I want to thank them for stopping to help me,” Aryan said. “I mean they were just so nice.”
Aryan was left with a broken ankle and covered in road rash.
“My head was bleeding, I was bleeding all over,” Aryan said.
His damaged motorcycle was towed from the scene. Aryan now must get around in a wheelchair or on crutches. He is determined to help investigators find the driver who left in this condition.
“I’m hoping that we catch this person so he cannot harm anybody else,” Aryan said.
Aryan said he will be off the road for a couple of months to recover. He asks drivers to pay special attention to motorcyclists during the summer months.
Jennifer Pierce is an Emmy-award-winning reporter for News 9 and has been on staff since 2017. While most days, she covers crime in the metro and court cases, she enjoys telling the stories of Native Americans in Oklahoma. Jennifer is a proud member of the Choctaw Nation. She takes pride in the success her tribe and the many other tribes in Oklahoma have gained in recent years.
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