Police looking for driver in deadly east Harris Co. hit and run

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The search is on for the driver who hit and killed a man in east Harris County this morning, then took off.

The victim was walking in a construction area near Freeport and Garber when he was hit. The force was so strong it knocked his cell phone right out of his hand.

He was hit by a white truck driving north. James Bedingfield saw it all.

"Me and my son stopped at the store to get gas and I told my son to watch that guy," said Bedingfield. "And all of a sudden, the truck came out of nowhere doing 60 or 70 miles per hour, hit him and kept going; never stopped."

Surveillance video from the gas station shows only the truck's headlights. The truck zoomed past the top corner of the screen. Bedingfield immediately asked for help.

"He just came in and said, 'Call 911. Someone hit it and ran away, so I called 911,'" said store clerk Sunny Momin.

Eyewitnesses say the man walking was on his phone, which is now part of the evidence gathered by sheriff detectives.

Investigators say the driver of the truck wouldn't have been at fault if he had only stopped. But now, the driver is facing failure to stop and render aide charges. Bedingfield just hopes he's found.

"It's a white Ford truck," said Bedingfield. "It's going to have right front damage to it, so if anyone sees it, please call the cops."