Cape Town - Just five days ago, Che Newman was celebrating his 23rd birthday with a group of friends. But the evening was cut short after a reckless driver ploughed into the local lifesaving hero and left him for dead.
Now, the student’s father has warned that he is tightening the net on the motorist who almost killed his son.
It started as a fun night out for Newman and his three friends, as the group had a few drinks at Kalk Bay’s Polana restaurant on Sunday.
One friend, Chris Moyce, said they left the restaurant at about 11.30pm.
Moyce and another friend ran ahead into the harbour’s parking lot and Newman followed.
When the friend went back towards Polana to try and track down the last member of the group, Newman and Moyce decided to venture to the level crossing just outside the parking area.
“That’s when the car first passed us,” said Moyce. “The person driving it definitely saw us.”
The next moment Moyce saw a black hatchback crashing into his friend.
Newman described the experience as a nightmare. He said one minute he was being dragged under the car and the next he was waking up in hospital with a broken arm, fractured collarbone and cracked ribs that had punctured his lungs.
While the student, who studies surface design at Cape Peninsula University of Technology, is happy to be alive, he has a long recovery ahead of him and will be unable to complete his studies this year.
When his father, Lunga, who lives in Joburg, saw his son lying battered and broken in hospital, he vowed to track down the culprit driver.
“I resolved that I would not go back home until my investigation was done.”
The information security expert’s investigation began with video footage caught by a security camera inside the parking lot, which was obtained from the Kalk Bay harbour office.
In the footage, the car that allegedly ran over Newman is shown entering the parking lot, before swinging around, without stopping, and speeding out of the exit. Moments later, a security guard inside the parking lot follows, responding to the commotion outside.
For Lunga, the video will be integral to catching the motorist. “With the help of a few dealerships, I think I’ve identified the car as an Alfa Mito.”
Lunga said he had been passing on any information he found to the police, and was confident there would be an arrest by the end of the week.
Police spokesman Captain FC van Wyk confirmed that a reckless and negligent driving docket had been opened and was being investigated.
Lunga said: “What I can’t understand is how anybody could do what this monster did to my son. How can they walk around knowing that they might have killed someone and do nothing about it?”
He has urged the driver to go to the police. “It is inevitable that we will find them, but it will save a lot of time and work if they just admit to what they did.”
Che Newman first made the news in 2009 as a lifesaver on nearby Danger Beach when he rescued five drowning swimmers in a single day.
Cape Argus
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