Police suspend search for driver who killed Vincent Tran, 26, on bike in Irving Park

Update 10/31/19, 8:45 PM: The Cook County medical examiner's office has identified the victim as Vincent Tran, 26, of the 6100 block N. Kimball Avenue.

The Chicago Police Department has suspended the search for a hit-and-run driver who fatally struck cyclist Vincent Tran, 26, in the Irving Park community earlier this month, citing a lack of leads.

On Sunday, October 20, at about 2:18 a.m., Tran was cycling at Irving Park and Kimball Avenue when a driver struck him. At this intersection, Irving Park is five lanes wide.

Tran, who was conscious after the crash, told investigators that the driver was in a black vehicle and fled westbound. The police report does not specify which direction the bike rider was traveling.

Tran complained of back pain and was transported to Illinois Masonic Hospital, according to police. He died on Monday, October 28, at 11:55 a.m., according to the Cook County medical's office. On Tuesday the medical examiner released the results of an autopsy that found Tran died from head injuries from the crash. He lived several blocks north of the crash site on the 6100 block N. Kimball Avenue in the Pulaski Park neighborhood.

According to Police News Affairs, the investigation has been suspended, and no images of the vehicle have been released.

This was the second on-street Chicago bike fatality of 2019. On Sunday, September 1, Richard Williams, 26, was riding a mountain bike in the 4500 block of West Lake Street, when the driver of a black four-door 2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer SUV fatally struck him and fled the scene, according to police.

According to the Chicago Department of Transportation, from 2014 through 2018, there were five to seven on-street Chicago bike deaths each year. Despite these recent tragedies, our city is on track for fewer cycling fatalities than usual this year.

Fatality Tracker: 2019 Chicago pedestrian and bicyclist deaths on surface streets
Pedestrian: 34
Bicyclist: 2

Note: Streetsblog Chicago’s traffic death numbers represent fatal crashes on Chicago surface streets, based on preliminary Chicago Police Department data for January though August 2019 released by the Chicago Department of Transportation, plus media reports for September and October.