Candlelight vigil planned to honour victim of hit-and-run

A candlelight vigil will be held in Windsor this week in memory of a child who died after being struck by a vehicle Sunday night.

The vigil is scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. at the corner of Jefferson Boulevard and Haig Avenue, where a child was hit by a vehicle that fled the scene and has yet to be found by city police.

The child, who reportedly lived in the area, was later pronounced dead.

Organizers of the vigil are asking attendees to wear masks and maintain physical distance from one another. People are invited to bring stuffed animals and balloons.

Autism Ontario Windsor-essex Chapter will be accepting donations on Thursday from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. to assist the child's family with funeral expenses. Donations of cash, cheque or gift cards can be dropped off at the organization's Windsor office, inside the Gino Marcus Community Centre, according to a post on the group's Facebook page.

Police are looking for the vehicle and driver involved in the hit-andrun at 8:45 p.m. on Sunday. Photos taken from surveillance footage in the area show a silver minivan with a black decal on the passenger side. It has painted running boards, a black roof rack and a front black tinted bug deflector. Photos can be viewed at windsorstar.com.

Area businesses and residents are asked to review any footage for the van, specifically in the area bound by Jefferson Boulevard to the east, Pillette Road to the west, South National Street to the north, and Tecumseh Road to the south between 8:40 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Sunday.

Anyone with information can contact Windsor police at 519-2556700, ext. 4000 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 519-258-8477 (TIPS) or at catchcrooks.com.