A YOUNG hit-and-run victim died last night after his family made the decision to switch off his life support machine.

Robert Clark, 20, died after doctors at the James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, said there was no hope of him pulling through.

The keen biker, from Grangetown, near Middlesbrough, suffered fatal head injuries, and doctors were preparing to amputate his left leg following the collision on Saturday.

Mr Clark, who worked at a recycling depot, was thrown 10ft across the road when the Volkswagen Bora hit his Honda 90cc motorbike from behind.

Only hours before his son died, Mr Clark's father, Malcolm, 54, told how he had prepared himself for the worst.

He said: "He's lost his leg and he'll lose his life. If you have a conscience, please help the police.

"Someone needs to be dealt with for doing this to my son."

Detective Inspector Colin Galloway, leading the Cleveland Police inquiry, said: "This young man was on his bike minding his own business when he was knocked over and left for dead.

"There is no evidence to suggest the driver stopped to care for this young man."

Officers were called to the scene in Normanby Road, South Bank, at about 4am on Saturday after Mr Clark was knocked from his motorcycle.

The blue Bora sped off along Normanby Road, towards the High Street, and was found burnt out just over an hour later, near Great Ayton, in North Yorkshire.

Officers are studying security camera footage of the car, registration YG51 RBU.

Mr Clark, who has three other sons and a daughter, said: "He had been at work all week and wasn't going to go out on Friday.

"Then he decided to go to the pizza shop and went to see a couple of friends. I never saw him alive again."

Mr Clark was taken to hospital with severe head and leg injuries. He had been kept sedated by doctors as they tried to control the swelling to his brain.

Det Insp Galloway appealed to the drivers of a Royal Mail van and a Hackney taxi, who may have seen the Bora near the High Street.

Anyone leaving the Fat Catz nightclub in Middlesbrough Road or the nearby pizza shop is asked to call police on (01642) 302626.

* A 23-year-old Middlesbrough man was arrested yesterday and was last night helping police with the inquiry.