A University of Michigan graduate student was injured in a hit-and-run accident last week while walking near her off-campus home, and police say they have no leads on a suspect.
Navya Varshney was injured around 1:45 a.m. Wednesday while crossing Elizabeth Street at the intersection of High Street as she walked from her car to her home on nearby Kingsley Street. A motorist who was traveling north on Elizabeth attempted to turn left on High Street against the flow of traffic on the one-way street, striking Varshney.
"When she was crossing going to the other side of the road on Elizabeth, he struck her and my daughter turned around and fell on the road and he just flew away," said her father, Niraj Varshney.
The police report says Navya Varshney, a 23 year-old first-year student in the U-M School of Dentistry, was hit by the front of the vehicle, was rolled or thrown, and then struck again by the side of the vehicle. Her father said she fell hard on her right wrist and fingers, rendering her right hand immobile, hit her head and sustained injuries to both shoulders.
She managed to dig out her cell phone with her left hand and called 911 and was later transferred by ambulance to the U-M Hospital, where she was discharged Wednesday evening.
A doctor later diagnosed her with broken ligaments, cartilage and nerve damage in the fingers of her right hand and given a sling for her arm and metal braces for her fingers. She also suffered injuries to her right temple, her shoulders and back. She has been recuperating at her parents' home in Novi.
Without the use of her right hand, "she cannot continue in this semester. She has to wait for the end of the year to join back into the college," her father said.
Ann Arbor Police Sgt. Aimee Metzer said the police report described her as having injuries that were apparent but less severe than broken bones.
Niraj Varshney said he has heard no follow-up from police investigators and was told on Thursday that there were no updates in the case.
"That's one of the surprising parts is that they never called," he said of the police.
Niraj Varshney said her daughter reported being struck by a Jeep, but there is no mention of either the vehicle make in the police report, Metzer said. There were no apparent witnesses to the incident
"We basically have zero information on the vehicle," Metzer said.
Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call the Ann Arbor Police Department at (734) 794-6920.