West Tennessee family upset after a teenager is involved in a hit and run

DYER, Tenn —  A father is in search of answers after he said his son was the victim of a hit and run Friday afternoon.

The family is offering a $500 reward in hopes of finding the driver responsible.

Jon Austin, 16, said “I remembered before it happened I could hear a truck coming up behind me and I didn’t think anything of it.”

Austin was walking down Walnut street headed to the store when  he said a truck hit him from behind.

“My head hit the windshield and busted it and I landed head first onto the curb.” Austin explained.

Jon Austin said after he was hit the driver ran over his right foot and drove off.

Jon’s father, Chad Cunningham said “his shoe actually had a tire track on it.” After being rushed to the emergency room in Milan, Cunningham expected the worst.

“The fact that somebody would hit him and just leave like that they didn’t know he was unconscious when they found him he could have been dead.”

Cunningham said the thought of his son being hit was a feeling like no other. “I was scared to death when I got there… which is just procedure they had him strapped down had his neck in a brace and he was shaking I guess just from the shock or the trauma.”

Family members believe whoever is responsible may live in the area.

“Such a small side street it’s not a lot of traffic there as far as you know back and forth traffic so I imagine it had to be somebody from this area.” Cunningham said.

The family said they spoke with officers from the Dyer police department the night after the incident happened.

“They said that they had several leads on a white vehicle, white truck.” Cunningham said.

The family is offering a $500 reward for information leading to an arrest. Jon said the fact that he wasn’t hurt is nothing short of a miracle.

“I felt very lucky I could come out of it with no scratches or bruises at all.”

WBBJ 7 Eyewitness News reached out to the Dyer police department for more information. We were told they are unable to release any  information until Monday.