KPoliceeon admits mowing down boy, 10
A JOYRIDER yesterday admitted ploughing into a 10-year-old boy in a sickening hit-and-run accident.
Conor Whalen, from Edinburgh, was riding a stolen Triumph Daytona 650cc motorbike when he struck the schoolboy in the city’s Drylaw, leaving the youngster with serious injuries.
His victim was hit on a pedestrian crossing when Whalen ran a red light.
The cowardly 20-year-old fled the scene, leaving the child who was screaming in agony lying on the road.
Whalen pled guilty at Edinburgh Sheriff Court to seriously injuring the boy in Ferry Road on August 19.
He had been riding bikes along the street with co-accused Marc Miller, 22, who pled guilty to driving in a dangerous manner.
A sheriff deferred sentence until later this month.
In the wake of the crash, the victim’s mother told how her son needed surgery for injuries that included two broken collarbones and a broken thigh, elbow and wrist.
The north of Edinburgh has been plagued in recent years by gangs of out-of-control youths on motorbikes, often stolen.
Detective Inspector Graham Grant, of Corstorphine CID, said: “Conor Whalen and Marc Miller’s actions resulted in a 10-year-old boy sustaining serious injuries, which will take a significant period of time to overcome.
“This was a major investigation, which has thankfully resulted in Whalen and Miller both submitting early pleas and sparing a child the trauma of a trial.”