A father-of-one died in a hit-and-run incident a day after attending his step-father’s funeral.
Darren ‘Daz’ Whitehouse, 43, was walking his dog near to his home in Tipton, West Midlands, when he was struck as he attempted to cross St Mark’s Road.
He was pronounced dead at the scene of the incident, which took place around 1.40pm on Saturday, February 27.
Police have since launched a manhunt for the driver – who fled the scene.
Forensic teams are also investigating a damaged silver Infiniti – the vehicle they believe hit Mr Whitehouse – which was recovered at the scene of the crash.
The car had been stolen in nearby Rowley Regis on February 24.
Family and friends meanwhile have paid tribute to Mr Whitehouse, who was a full-time carer for his 66-year-old mother, Sue.
In a statement, released today, they said: ‘We are devastated at the sudden loss of Darren.
Darren ‘Daz’ Whitehouse, 43, was walking his dog near to his home in Tipton, West Midlands, when he was struck as he attempted to cross St Mark’s Road
Detectives meanwhile are investigating a silver Infiniti (pictured) – the vehicle they believe hit Mr Whitehouse. The car had been stolen in nearby Rowley Regis on February 24
‘We are so grateful for the support that the local community have shown to our family, thank you.
‘If anyone has any information that may assist the investigation please contact the police directly.
‘Whilst we struggle to come to terms with this devastating loss we would ask that our privacy is respected at this difficult time.’
Friends have also paid tribute to Mr Whitehouse. One friend, David Whatmore, 29, who knew Mr Whitehouse for 15 years, told the Sun: ‘He was just a normal, brilliant person who never had any issues with anyone.
‘His mother is in bits and they had just buried his stepdad the day before.’
Another friend, Sarah Brownhill, writing on a fundraising page set up to support his family, described Mr Whitehouse as a ‘top bloke’.
She said: ‘I knew Daz for many years and he’s a top bloke, we’ve had some laughs!
‘You will be sadly missed my thoughts are with all his family and friends at this sad time xx.’
Another, Kelvin Lawley, described Mr Whitehouse as a ‘true gentleman’, adding: ‘He was gave son very good advice.
‘He will be sadly missed by us especially my 15-year-old son. Fly high bro.’
The GoFundMe page, set up by family friend Samantha Jones, has raised more than £1,200 of its £2,000 target since being launched on Sunday.
A separate JustGiving page, set up family friend Andrew Averill, has also raised more than £800.
In a post on the page, which aims to raise £5,000 to help cover the costs of the funeral, Mr Averill said: ‘I am close to Darren’s brother Lee and was good friends with Daz.
‘I know they’ve had some bad news lately with deaths in the family, including losing their step-dad, and their mother has fallen into ill health.
‘Lee and Daz were only saying the other day how their luck has got to change and now this happens?
A separate JustGiving page, set up family friend Andrew Averill, has also raised more than £800. Pictured: The page posted this picture of Mr Whitehouse
‘Could we all chip in please and try and take some of the burden from his nearest and dearest at this tragic time?’
Police and paramedics dashed to the scene of the incident on Saturday afternoon.
Despite desperate efforts to save Mr Whitehouse, the father-of-one died a short time later.
A cyclist was also hit during the incident but was not seriously hurt, police say.
Meanwhile, officers are also investigating a ‘disorder incident’ in which a man was stabbed in a shop on the same street 30 minutes later.
Police had earlier said it was ‘too soon’ to know if the two incidents are linked.
However officers now say they do not believe the incidents are linked have launched a separate investigation.
West Midlands Police Superintendent Chris Mallet, said: ‘Tragically a pedestrian has lost his life and my thoughts are with his family.
‘We have a specialist family liaison officer working with them at this tragic time.
‘Exactly what’s gone on is unclear at this stage but our enquiries are progressing at pace.
‘We believe we have recovered the offending vehicle, a silver car, and that will be forensically examined.
‘We have already started trawling CCTV and road cameras as we attempt to locate the hit and run driver.’
Drivers who were in the area at the time of the collision have also been asked to check their dashcam footage to see whether they caught the incident.
Any witnesses can call police on 101 or message them on Live Chat via WMP Online, quoting log 1827 from 27 Feb.