Michael Hill, who was 23 when he struck a seven-year-old boy while riding an electric bike, has warned from prison that e-bikes "are a weapon". The collision on Westminster Road in Middlesbrough in August 2025 left the child with a traumatic brain injury.
Hill, who is serving a four-and-a-half year custodial sentence, has featured in a Cleveland Police YouTube video aimed at highlighting the dangers of electric bikes. He and an accomplice, Lee Oliver, had been riding around Middlesbrough without driving licences or insurance. Hill was a disqualified driver, and both riders fled the scene immediately after the collision.
Boy airlifted to hospital after collision
The young boy was airlifted to hospital, where he remained in an induced coma for three months. He became entirely dependent on his parents, who were forced to travel to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle every day while simultaneously caring for his siblings and continuing to work.
Speaking from prison as part of the Cleveland Police video, Hill reflected on the profound impact the incident has had on his life and mental health, reports Teesside Live.
He said: "People just jump on and think they are fun. They are very dangerous truthfully - they are a weapon.
"It has affected me, it has affected the child, it has affected the parents. I wish i didn't go out on the bike that day. I can't sleep on a night, I still get dreams about what happened, what I had done.
"It's just a blur truthfully, it just all happened so fast. I was literally going down the road, say not even 20mph, cruising down the road then all of a sudden the little boy runs in between two parked cars from the path and into the handlebars of my bike and that's when I realised I had ran a child over. I couldn't do anything - I took off because I was scared.
"It has affected my mental health a lot. I can't sleep on a night, I get dreams of what I did. Thinking about what's happened to him is something that I'm going to have to deal with now. I've hit a child and truthfully it's horrible."
Father describes son's lost independence
Hill stated that he felt he warranted a lengthier sentence, adding: "I've worried month, after month after month if the child was alright."
Speaking through an actor, the boy's father said: "My son has always been full of life, it is really difficult to see that his childhood has been impacted so much."
He revealed his son had sustained a traumatic brain injury, leaving him unable to care for himself, stating: "Every day for us now is a constant struggle. His general quality of life has been diminished. He has lost his independence."
He further commented: "These bikes are impossible to be heard close by or from far away with them being electric. Any moving vehicle is a deadly weapon and e-bikes should be treated as such.
"Even if one rider just stopped and thought....I'm not going to do this....I'm not going to cause harm to the people around me....it will mean a step in the right direction."
