Hit-and-run leaves Hurst skateboarder critically injured

HURST, Texas - Police in Hurst are looking for a driver who left after hitting a man on a skateboard.

20-year-old Carlos Rucci Jr. is still in critical condition and unable stay awake long enough to tell investigators about what happened.

Rucci Jr. was found on the sidewalk along Pipeline Road around 10:45 p.m. Tuesday night. At first, police thought he may have been injured in a fall, but doctors said his injuries are consistent with being hit by a vehicle. Based on the injuries, investigators believe he may have been hit by a pickup truck.

Police are looking at businesses in the area to see if anyone has surveillance video of the truck that hit Carlos. But so far, they haven't been able to release any images. They're looking for any witnesses who may have heard or seen anything to come forward and help track down the driver.

Carlos Rucci Sr. has hardly slept or left his son's bedside since he was hit by a truck while skateboarding on a busy road.

“That's not human what they did to him. I couldn't believe it,” he said. “I’m still destroyed. I haven't eaten anything. Every time I look at him, I cry. It's bad.”

Rucci Sr. says his son was headed to get something to eat nearby his Hurst home. He rode a skateboard there because his car needed repairs. Somewhere along the way, his son was hit and left lying unconscious on the sidewalk. Someone passing by saw him and called 911.

“What kind of person would do that?” said Kory Guzman, the victim’s sister. “He never did anything to you.”

The crash left the 20-year-old father of a baby girl with injuries from his head to his lower body, including a broken leg, staples in his head, facial fractures and bleeding in his brain. He also can't see out of his right eye. It's unsure if he ever will.

“Today was the first time he talked to me for like two minutes,” Rucci Sr. said. “He told me there was a truck.”

Police are relying on any surveillance video from nearby businesses and hoping any witnesses or the driver responsible will come forward.

“You are hurting a lot of people here,” Guzman said. “Yeah, you might physically hurt one person. But emotionally, you are hurting everyone else.”

Rucci's family says his doctors are optimistic he'll recover, but he has a long way to go. It's unclear when he'll be able to go home from the hospital.                 

Anyone who may have witnessed the accident or who has more information should call the Hurst Police Department.