THE stunned and grief-stricken parents of a Winchester man killed in a hit and run road smash have appealed for the driver of the vehicle to contact police.

Gareth Jones, 22, was knocked off his Honda 90cc bike after a collision with a white Ford Escort on St Cross Road in Winchester, early on Saturday.

The seemingly-callous driver, who left Gareth dying in the road, was today still being sought by the police, who have issued an urgent appeal for witnesses.

His father, Michael Jones, a prison officer, said: "We are absolutely stupefied. How could anybody be so callous as to leave an injured person in the road and drive off Humanity just goes out the window. They should go to the police.

"Heaven help him if I get him in my prison. It may have been a tragic accident but we would like to know if it was an accident and not that somebody deliberately murdered my son."

His mother, Trudy, said: "I think I will be had up for murder if I get hold of him."

They paid tribute to their only son who was fulfilling his ambition of running a pub when in June he was appointed bar manager at The Cricketers in Easton, near Winchester.

Mr Jones said: "He was a likeable clown, the life and soul of the party." Mrs Jones said: "He was fun-loving but very thoughtful. If anyone had a problem Gareth would be there to try to solve it. He hated to see people upset."

Only two weeks ago Gareth served his parents at their 25th wedding anniversary at the pub. "He took great delight in doing it," said Mr Jones. The tears welling in his eyes, he said: "The last thing he said to us on Friday evening was that if he was not coming back he would give us a bell" Gareth, who lived with his parents at Alresford Road, suffered what police described as "huge injuries" to his head, stomach, chest and legs.

He was taken by ambulance to the Royal Hampshire County Hospital for an emergency operation.

On Saturday morning he was transferred to Southampton General Hospital where he under-went further surgery for more than ten hours. He died at 8.20pm, some 19 hours after the collision. Police are urgently appealing for witnesses to the incident, which happened at 1.41am as Gareth travelled south on St Cross Road near the junction with Lansdowne Avenue. Officers are seeking the occupants of the Escort, which was later found abandoned on the M3 near Basingstoke.

A man has been arrested and is helping police with their enquiries.

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