'Our lives have been ripped apart': Mum pays tribute to 'gentle giant' killed in hit-and-run

William George Rogers, aged 26, died when he was hit by a vehicle on the B4368 at Diddlebury, between Craven Arms and Much Wenlock, in the early hours of Saturday, April 30.

His mum, Mandy Oliver, said: “We cannot find the words to express how we are feeling right now, our lives have been ripped apart.

“Will was our world, he was full of fun and could always make you smile with his witty sense of humour.

“With a smile and a hug he could make the world a better place.

“Will lived his life to the full, he has made many friends far and wide and he touched the hearts of everyone who knew him with his kindness and a heart of pure gold.

“He loved his life, his work and his rugby but most of all he loved being with those closest to him.

“Will was a ray of sunlight in our lives and our world as gone dark now that he has been taken from us.

“We would like to thank everyone for their support. We are taking comfort from the hundreds of wonderful messages we have received and from the bottom of our hearts we give thanks to those amazing members of the local community who have gone above and beyond to help police with their investigation.

“Our lives will never be the same without our gentle giant, he never failed to make us proud.”

A 56-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the collision and was bailed pending further enquiries.

An inquest into Mr Rogers' death has been opened.

A hearing at Shirehall heard that in the early hours of the morning, Mr Rogers, from Bucknell, Shropshire, was hit and suffered fatal injuries.

Giving evidence at the hearing, coroner's officer Ceri Badham said: "A member of the public discovered the body and called the police."

CPR was attempted, but sadly, Mr Rogers could not be saved and paramedics confirmed his death at the scene.

John Ellery, senior coroner for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, adjourned the inquest until August 23.