Man critically injured in apparent midnight hit-and-run near Valley post office

Vehicle parts located near victim found unconscious on road, according to JPD; sister says he is recovering at Anchorage hospital

(Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Independent file photo)

By Mark Sabbatini

Juneau Independent

A Juneau man suffered critical head and other injuries when he was apparently struck by a hit-and-run vehicle near the Mendenhall Valley Post Office sometime late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning, according to a relative and the Juneau Police Department.

The 38-year-old man was medevaced to an Anchorage hospital after he was found lying unconscious on Vintage Boulevard at about 12:30 a.m. Wednesday, said Monica Dyakanoff, a sister living in California, in a phone interview Wednesday evening. She said her brother, who suffers from mental health issues, had departed his mother’s house nearby in the Valley on Tuesday evening.

"My mom knew next to nothing other than he was found in the middle of the street and we believe there was a vehicle rearview mirror nearby the side of his body, and that he needed to be medevaced," Dyakanoff said. She said she was told by hospital officials her brother sustained a brain hemorrhage, brain bleeding, facial injuries and several fractures.

A JPD press release issued Thursday, which did not name the victim, stated he regained consciousness when emergency responders from the police department and Capital City Fire/Rescue arrived.

"The man had injuries to his face, hands and legs," the release states. "There were also pieces of a vehicle located nearby, and it appeared that the man had been struck by a vehicle."

This case is still under investigation and JPD is asking people with tips to call the department’s business line at (907) 586-0600 or submit them anonymously online via www.juneaucrimeline.com.

Dyakanoff said Thursday her brother is no longer on a ventilator, but is still in the intensive care unit and not responsive to spoken commands. She said she is planning during the coming days to join other family members at the hospital as he faces what they expect will be a long rehabilitation.

"Now that he’s off the breathing tube, the hard part starts," she said.

• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.