A missing 61-year-old Edgewater man was found hospitalized after friends say he was struck by a vehicle that fled, ending a frantic search but leaving neighbors waiting for answers.
Jamie Dozier disappeared Sunday after leaving his building, and friends later learned he had been taken to St. Francis Hospital after an apparent hit-and-run, according to ABC7 Chicago. Friends said Dozier suffered head trauma and that one of them is staying at the hospital with him.
Friends noticed Dozier was missing after he missed plans
Dozier’s friends became concerned Sunday, which was also his birthday, when he stopped answering calls and texts. A neighbor, Ann Regan, said the behavior was out of character for someone known around the neighborhood as a friendly, positive presence.
Regan said Dozier had been expected at a show Monday night, but never arrived. A friend filed a missing-person report, and surveillance footage reportedly showed Dozier leaving his building around 5:18 p.m. Sunday.
Police have no vehicle description in the crash
After flyers were posted around Edgewater, someone contacted Regan with information that a man matching Dozier’s description had been taken to the hospital after being hit while crossing near Ravenswood and Ridge. The crash details came from friends and people who responded to the neighborhood search, while police have not released a description of the vehicle.
Chicago police are asking anyone who witnessed the crash or has information about the driver to come forward, ABC7 Chicago reported. No arrest or citation has been announced, and Dozier’s condition was not otherwise detailed beyond the reported head trauma.
The case comes after another serious hit-and-run investigation in Edgewater last year. In that separate crash, police sought a Porsche Cayenne driver accused of striking a bicyclist near Kenmore Avenue and Thorndale Avenue, according to an earlier Hoodline report.
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