‘Cold, Callous’ Driver Left Bleeding Cyclist In Road: Judge

SKOKIE, IL — After striking a 14-year-old cyclist with a car and running over his bicycle last weekend on Devon Avenue, a Park Ridge man got out of his car and saw the injured teen before getting back into his car and fleeing, authorities said.

George Nikolakakis, 45, has been charged with leaving the scene of an injury accident, a class 2 felony punishable by sentences ranging from probation to seven years in prison.

Nikolakakis appeared in court for the first time Tuesday in Skokie, where a judge ordered him detained at Cook County Jail unless he comes up with the $10,000 cash portion of his bond.

Prosecutors said Nikolakakis was driving west on Devon Avenue approaching River Road around 9:30 p.m. Sunday when he hit the cyclist with the driver's side of a gray Toyota Corolla, knocking the boy to the ground and leaving him with a concussion and bleeding from the head.

"[Nikolakakis] then ran over the victim's bicycle before stopping his vehicle. [Nikolakakis] got out of his vehicle, looked at the damage to his vehicle, and looked at victim before getting back into his car and driving away," said Assistant State's Attorney Collin DeBrabander.

Someone who had witnessed the crash and the driver's decision not to stop and render aid rushed over, saw the 14-year-old bleeding from his head and called 911, according to DeBrabander, who said the boy was treated with seven staples to his head and diagnosed with a concussion.

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At the time of the police report, the injured child was set to undergo an X-ray to determine if his leg was broken, DeBrabander said.

Park Ridge police dispatched to the scene found Nikolakakis in the parking lot of the nearby Rivers Casino attempting to change the front tire or a damaged Corolla, which was missing its driver's side mirror, the prosecutor said.

Officers reported they found the boy's bicycle and a matching side mirror at the scene of the crash. There was no indication in police reports that alcohol was involved in the crash, DeBrabander told the judge.

After being taken into custody, Nikolakakis "admitted that he struck 'a kid on a bike,' that he pulled over and didn't think anyone noticed him so he left the scene, and he was going to go home and not report the incident to police after he'd finished changing his tire," the prosecutor said.

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Nikolakakis is a married father of two who works at Domino's, according to Assistant Public Defender Greg Kobus, who said Nikolakakis' family intended to hire defense attorney Michael Monico for future court appearances. Nikolakakis is due back in court July 26 for a bond review hearing.

Associate Judge Anthony Calabrese said he found the allegation that Nikolakakis had knowledge of the boy's injury after stopping his car to be especially troubling.

"it is a very cold, callous and heartless thing to do, should that have been the case, to get back in your car and drive away and leave a 14-year-old to suffer potentially fatal injuries," Calabrese told him.

"And to be principally concerned with changing one's tire as opposed to be concerned about getting aid or assistance to a 14-year-old child," he said. "It must be difficult to look at one's own children with love and passion and not think that that 14-year-old is somebody else's pride and joy."