A video journalist was killed on Tuesday night after his motorcycle was allegedly struck by a speeding BMW on the Maduravoyal-Tambaram elevated bypass road, The Indian Express reported. The victim also doubled as a Rapido bike taxi rider to support himself.
The accident occurred when the luxury vehicle reportedly struck Kumar’s motorcycle with such intensity that he was thrown nearly 100 meters from the point of impact. Authorities later discovered his body on a lower section of the road.
Kumar, a resident of the Pondy Bazaar area in Chennai, worked with a Telugu news channel and was recently affiliated with a Telugu YouTube channel, police officials said. His ID cards were recovered at the scene.
Despite his career in journalism, Kumar took up part-time work as a bike taxi rider to meet his financial needs, according to a fellow video journalist who knew him personally.
The BMW driver allegedly fled the scene, abandoning the car at the accident site. Initial investigations indicate that the vehicle’s automatic sensor system may have activated after the collision, causing the car to stop and leaving the driver with no choice but to leave it behind.
Commuters noticed the damaged bike and the abandoned car nearby and promptly alerted authorities, triggering a search that ultimately led to the discovery of Kumar’s body. Police sources stated that the BMW driver has yet to be apprehended.