A man walking home from a night out with friends in Geelong has been hit by a car and left to die in the early hours of the morning, in what police have described as a despicable act.
Detective Inspector Stuart McGregor said the man, 32, was found shortly after the incident, at 3:20am, with life-threatening injuries.
"The driver has been gutless, has done the wrong thing, has hit him … and then has just kept on going," he said.
"The people that found him … tried everything they could to assist him and bring him back, but unfortunately by the time the ambulance arrived it was too late, he had died."
He said it was "virtually impossible" to say whether the man might have survived if the driver had stopped.
"If this person had've stopped and just let the ambulance know that he's there and needing assistance, that might have been just enough time for them to get here and save his life."
"While the collision occurred and he might have died straight away — we don't know, I don't know, certainly the person in that car won't know and he or she knows that they should've stopped."
Inspector McGregor said the man was "a matter of blocks" from his home and was walking in the bike lane on Yarra Street, in South Geelong.
He said the car hit him on the passenger side before driving away, and the driver would have known it happened.
"It really is a despicable act. It is something that I just can not fathom," he said.
"This is Christmas time, this is a time when people should be caring and sharing, this is a time of families getting together.
"What this person has done is the worst thing for the family of this victim. They're now going to have horrible memories of Christmas time — they're going to have the worst Christmas ever this year and it will never get better for them.
"And the worst thing for them will be that it also now means that they know their son was left to die on the road at Christmas."
He said police were looking for a car with damage on the passenger side and a missing exterior mirror.
Victoria Police's Major Collision Investigation Unit released CCTV footage of what appears to be a white van, in relation to the incident.
Detective Sergeant Stephen Hill said they were looking for the driver of a white Mercedes van who they believe can assist them with their enquiries.
"We would like to speak to the driver of a white Mercedes Vito van that has a decal on the side and is fitted with roof racks," Detective Sergeant Hill said.
"The van will have damage to the front passenger side."
Detectives are also looking for anyone who may have seen or heard anything that could assist them with their inquiries.
"We haven't found any eye witnesses to it or anyone who's been able to tell us what time if actually occurred from hearing or seeing the incident," he said.
"That's the sort of information that's going to make a difference between securing this conviction or not.
"We desperately need to hear from anyone who might be able to provide us with this information."
Second fatality in Victoria
In a separate incident, another man died after being hit by a car at Lang Lang in Victoria's south-east.
Police said the man was walking on the South Gippsland Highway when he was struck at about 10:30pm last night.
The 22-year-old male driver stopped at the scene and is assisting police.
