Boy, 15, dead in hit-and-run crash near Crystal Lake

Police said a teen was hit by a car and killed while riding a bicycle near Crystal Lake and that the driver fled the scene.

The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office said two 15-year-old boys were riding bikes near on Terra Cotta Road near Deering Oaks Lane when an unknown southbound vehicle struck one of the bicycles from behind and fled without stopping.

The teen was pronounced dead at Northwestern McHenry Hospital, police said.

Authorities have not identified the boy. A woman posted on Facebook that it was her son who died and that “I pray that they find” the driver.

An autopsy performed by McHenry County Coroner Michael Rein found blunt force injuries as the cause of death, according to a coroner’s office news release. A toxicology is currently pending. The coroner’s office was notified around 11 a.m. by Northwestern Hospital McHenry to investigate the death, according to the release.

The Coroner’s Office is continuing to work collaboratively with the McHenry County Sheriff and Crystal Lake Fire Protection District, according to the release.

The Crystal Lake Fire and Rescue Department also responded, but Deputy Chief Rick Kaiser declined to give any details or confirm that a crash had occurred. He referred the call to the sheriff’s office. A message was left with McHenry County Coroner Michael Rein.

A sheriff’s alert posted about 10 p.m. Wednesday reported that Terra Cotta Road would be shut down for several hours between East Hillside and Old Westbury roads, an area north of Crystal Lake, northwest of where Routes 31 and 176 intersect. An alert about five hours later indicated the road had reopened.