Man suffering stroke may have caused last week’s hit-and-run

The Presque Isle County Sheriff?s Department believes the unidentified driver of a vehicle which struck a Virginia cyclist on US-23 July 14 may have been suffering a stroke at the time of the accident. Al Friebe, 46, a senior instructor of computer science at Alchemy in Springfield, Virginia, was bicycling on US-23 north, near 646 Highway, when a vehicle threw him into the ditch. The accident left Friebe unconscious with broken ribs and a broken arm, and the sheriff?s department in search of the vehicle, which didn?t stop at the scene.

A DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN said a call was received from a family member of a 75-year-old Warren man, who is recovering from a series of strokes in a Warren hospital. The family member, staying at a cottage in the area, said there was damage to his father?s vehicle that couldn?t be explained. The stroke victim doesn?t remember hitting Friebe.

The case remains under investigation, but can?t move forward until officers interview the Warren man. Friebe, who underwent surgery for the injuries, was discharged from Munson Medical Center in Traverse City last Friday. Friebe went to visit his father in Duluth before flying back to Washington D.C. Once home, he?ll undergo intensive physical therapy as a part of the healing process.

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Friebe was bicycling solo from Virginia to Duluth and back. He had made his way across the upper peninsula, was escorted across the Mackinac Bridge, and spent the evening in Mackinaw City, to conclude day five of his return trip home.

ON DAY SIX of the return trip, according to his website, www. catspace.com, Friebe was enroute to Alpena along the Lake Huron shoreline, but the accident canceled any plans of him reaching Alpena or his ultimate destination.

Friebe was to travel through Michigan, crossing into Canada in Sarnia, then back into the U.S. at Niagara Falls. He was to be home before the end of the month, but got there earlier than expected, by means he didn?t plan.

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