Police on Wednesday said they believe a man killed in a hit-and-run crash in Northeast Portland was struck by a car racing another vehicle.

An eastbound silver Honda Pilot slammed into Njuguna Githere, 58, as he walked south across Northeast Sandy Boulevard near 20th Avenue around 10:30 p.m. Saturday, the Portland Police Bureau said.

The driver did not stop and fled the scene, police said. Githere died Tuesday while receiving treatment for his injuries, making him the 23rd person killed on Portland's streets this year.

Investigators believe the Honda was racing another car when the crash occurred, said Sgt. Chris Burley, a Portland police spokesman. He did not provide a description of the other vehicle.

Police said the Honda's passenger side likely sustained damage and has a missing side mirror.

Long a Portland pastime, illegal street racing has become an increasingly conspicuous nuisance and public safety hazard.

Four other people have been killed in Portland street-racing incidents in the past three years, records show.

In June, a recent high-school graduate wound up in a coma after being hit by a racer, the girl's mother told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Police this month arrested a man suspected of striking a spectator with his car during an illegal street racing event in Northeast Portland Aug. 19 then driving off.

A week earlier, racers shut down the Fremont Bridge for 30 minutes, snarling traffic in order to let a few daring drivers burn rubber and turn tight circles on the span's lower deck.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh

skavanaugh@oregonian.com

503-294-7632 || @shanedkavanaugh