POLICE have pleaded for the driver of the vehicle that killed a woman in Dorchester to "do the right thing and come forward".

Officers are looking for the driver of a car who left the scene of a collision involving a pedestrian – a 39-year old Romanian woman and the mother of a young son – in The Grove on Wednesday night.

The woman, who lived locally, was on her way to her car to go to work when she was struck. Police believe she had walked down a flight of stairs opposite the junction of School Lane, when she was hit by the car in The Grove.

She was taken to Dorset County Hospital, but died from her injuries. Her family are being supported by specially-trained officers.

A post-mortem was due to be carried out yesterday.

A 24-year-old man from Dorchester, 36-year-old man from Piddlehinton and a 43-year-old man from Bristol were arrested in relation to the incident but yesterday they were released without charge. Police said it had been established the two vehicles they had been travelling in were not involved in the incident.

Following enquiries, officers are now concentrating their efforts on finding another vehicle which made off down The Grove away from the town centre.

Inspector Joe Pardey of Dorset Police’s Traffic Unit said: "I am making a direct plea to the driver of the vehicle that collided with the victim to please do the right thing and come forward. A family have been left grieving over the loss of their loved one and are desperate for answers.

“We will find who has done it, it is only a matter of time."

He added: "The lady suffered significant injuries which suggest a significant impact on the vehicle. I suspect there will be damage to its front side. If people see a vehicle which matches this description they should contact us.

“I would also appeal to car garages and people who repair cars who may have had someone requesting urgent repair, which wasn’t explained, to contact us.”

Police have narrowed down their search to four vehicles including two red hatchbacks, a dark-coloured hatchback and a silver SUV-sized vehicle.

Insp Pardey said: ""We now believe the suspect vehicle was travelling down The Grove away from Dorchester town centre.

"Our CCTV enquiries have focused our search for four cars in the area at the time - two red hatchbacks, a dark-coloured hatchback and a silver SUV.

"The drivers of these vehicles could have been involved in the collision or seen something critical, so please get in touch.

“I would ask the drivers of those vehicles to come forward. They may or may not have been involved, but we need to speak with them.”

He added: “If you were driving through Dorchester between 7pm and 8pm on Wednesday evening, did you see any vehicles acting suspiciously or do you have any dashcam footage that could assist with the investigation?

"I would urge anyone with information about the incident, however small, to please contact Dorset Police."

Police were called at 7.46pm on Wednesday to reports of the fail-to-stop collision.

Officers continue to make local enquiries, including reviewing CCTV footage and speaking to local residents and businesses.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Dorset Police on 101 quoting incident number 28:354. Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.