This article was originally published on GoErie.com by Tim Hahn on Tuesday, May 23, 2017

A pedestrian hit by a stolen truck on West 26th Street in Erie on Monday afternoon is recovering at UPMC Hamot as the man accused of striking him remains in the Erie County Prison on a list of criminal charges.

Erie police had initially reported on Tuesday morning that the 83-year-old pedestrian, who was struck in the 200 block of West 26th Street late Monday afternoon, had died of his injuries. But investigators said later Tuesday morning that the information detectives had received about the man’s death was false.

A detective went to the hospital Tuesday morning and confirmed that the victim is still alive. The detective spoke to the man, who is listed in fair condition, Erie police Lt. Jon Peters said.

The Erie man accused of striking the victim with a work pickup truck he had stolen, 22-year-old Jacob D. Doss, remains in the Erie County Prison on $250,000 bond following his arraignment Monday night by Erie 2nd Ward District Judge Paul Urbaniak on charges including robbery of a motor vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle, theft and reckless driving.

Police charge that a man driving a Mayer Brothers work truck was traveling south on State Street at about 4:40 p.m. Monday when he said a man walking west across State Street turned around, jumped in the travel lane and onto the truck, striking his head on the windshield and cracking the glass. The driver said he got out of the truck and the pedestrian, identified as Doss, jumped into the passenger side of the truck and slid over to the driver’s side, according to investigators.

Doss stated to the person who had the truck that he “needs to save his second nephew.” Doss also said, “(Expletive) you” and “I’ll kill you” to the victim before driving off in the truck heading south, police wrote in the criminal complaint.

Doss struck the pedestrian, and an occupied vehicle on West 26th Street, before the stolen truck crashed into the east side of the Saint Vincent Surgery Center, 312 W. 25th St. The truck crashed into an office window “where employees of the office sit and work,” police wrote in the criminal complaint.

Doss fled the truck with a self-inflicted cut, and with injuries from the crash, and traveled to Saint Vincent Health Center. Doss was taken into police custody from the hospital’s emergency room at 8:40 p.m. Monday, according to the Erie police arrest sheet.

Return to goerie.com for updates. See Wednesday’s Erie Times-News for more details.