Search underway for driver who struck 5-year-old in fast-food parking lot

CHARLOTTE — A search is underway for a driver who fled the scene after striking a 5-year-old boy in a North Charlotte fast-food parking lot Monday afternoon around 3:30 p.m. The child was transported to a hospital to recover from his injuries.

The incident occurred in the Mallard Creek area as Dr. Ashley Parker stopped at the restaurant with her 5-year-old son, Tyheir, and her 9-year-old daughter to get food.

As they exited their vehicle, Parker noticed a car moving quickly through the parking lot and attempted to signal the driver to stop.

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Parker recalled seeing the vehicle enter the lot at high speed before her son was hit. “And I see this guy coming into the lot really fast, and I kinda jump out, flag him down to stop him. He’s starting to come out of the car and by the time I tried to stop him, the guy hits my son,” Parker said.

Following the impact, the child was trapped beneath the vehicle. “I saw him under the car,” Parker said. “Yeah, he was under the front end of the car. And thankfully he didn’t roll over him.” Parker picked up her son, placed him inside her truck, and called 911.

While Parker was on the phone with emergency dispatchers, the driver approached her vehicle. “Guy comes up behind me, I’m on the phone with 911, and he says, ‘Is he okay?’ And I look at him, then look back at my son bc i’m checking him out, and I look back, and the guy is gone,” Parker said.

In shock from the incident, Parker was unable to record the vehicle’s license plate number.

Surveillance video captured an image of the suspect car, but the specific make, model, and license plate remain unknown due to the grainy quality of the footage.

Search underway for driver who struck 5-year-old in fast-food parking lot

Despite the traumatic event, Parker expressed gratitude that her son survived. “My anxiety was through the roof last night. But I know God is with us,” Parker said. She recalled crying at the hospital when her son comforted her, telling her, “Mom, don’t cry, I’m alive because god saved me.”

Tyheir is recovering following the crash and urged the driver to exercise caution. “He was driving so fast like vroom vroom,” Tyheir said, adding, “Because you’re going too fast.”

Channel 9 reporter Evan Donovan reached out to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for details on the suspect vehicle and driver.