'My son begged for his leg back after hit-and-run'

A 15-year-old boy left horrifically injured when he was hit by a speeding stolen car "begged to have his leg back" after it was later amputated, his mother has said.

Zach Michaels was riding his bike near Kirkby High School on Merseyside when he was struck by the Honda Civic, which was travelling at more than 70mph (112kmh) in a 20mph zone.

The driver has never been found despite various appeals following the 22 December 2024 incident.

Speaking a year later, Zach's mother Maria has called on the driver to come forward and said it would be a long time before her son could get over the trauma of what happened.

The teenager suffered various serious injuries and needed seven operations in seven days as doctors tried to save his leg.

"They tried multiple operations to try to save his right leg but there was actual sections of the bone just shattered and missing," Ms Michaels said.

"I had to tell him it wasn't there anymore and he begged me for it back.

"I'm never going to get over that, ever."

One of the police appeals was on BBC One's Crimewatch Live in October.

"It could've been anyone, it just so happened that Zach was crossing the road at that moment. He didn't do anything wrong," Ms Michaels continued.

"He should be able to get on his bike and ride to his mates' and he can't do that anymore.

"There is just so much more involved in this than just the physical healing and that's not going away anytime soon."

Det Sgt Simon Duffy said it was "a shocking incident" which had left Zack "with life-changing injuries which continue to impact him to this day".

"This was a residential area with a 20mph speed limit but our forensic investigators have established the car was travelling in excess of 70 miles per hour," he said.

"It is incomprehensible to think that anyone could even consider driving away and leaving the boy with such catastrophic injuries.

"We remain committed to tracking that person down and anyone who may have assisted following the collision."

Officers believe the car was in the Sefton and Kirkby areas for at least one week beforehand and appealed to anyone who may have seen the 2018 dark silver Honda Civic, with a false registration plate OV70 OWG, to contact police.

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