A Russian driver involved in a moped accident in Bali has offered a cryptic comeback to the Australian tourist he collided with and who initially claimed to have been the victim of a hit-and-run.
Dmitry Akimenko, 26, escaped with only minor knee injuries after colliding with the moped of Australian tourist Benjamin Ward, 24, at 2 a.m. on August 31 in the North Kuta district of Bali’s Badung Regency.
Mr Ward, who suffered serious head injuries and four broken bones – including the tibia and fibula of his right leg, which pierced the skin – initially claimed police were looking for a ‘Russian man’ following the crash.
However, according to Indonesian police, Daily Mail Australia announced last week that Mr Ward was in fact to blame.
Now Mr Akimenko has referenced the crash in an Instagram post that begins with him turning on the ignition of the Kawasaki Ninja he rode the night in question.
Dmitry Akimenko (pictured), 26, suffered minor knee injuries in a collision with Australian tourist Benjamin Ward, 24, at 2 a.m. on Thursday, August 31, in the North Kuta district of Bali’s Badung Regency
The video then transitions into a Russian comedy sketch in which a man, impaled by a tree branch, laughs away his gruesome injuries.
It is unclear whether Mr. Akimenko made light of his own injuries or those of Mr. Ward. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mr Akimenko for comment.
Exclusive footage taken in the aftermath of the head-on collision can now be revealed for the first time.
Benji Ward (pictured), 24, suffered serious head injuries and broke four bones, including the tibia and fibula of his right leg, which pierced the skin
One shows Mr Ward’s 155cc Yamaha NMax crumpled on the side of the road, while the other shows Mr Akimenko’s motorcycle on the footpath.
Indonesian police said there were no witnesses to the accident, but Mr Ward told them he was to blame.
“The hit and run crash never happened,” said First Inspector Putu Deniani.
‘The Australian and the Russian had a road accident and both were in the same medical clinic that night. They told us they have agreed to resolve the matter peacefully without legal action.”
Ms Deniani added: ‘We are disappointed by Mr Ward’s suggestion that it was a hit and run.
“The fact is that it was not a hit and run accident. He hit the Russian himself.’
Well-wishers donated more than $40,000 after a GoFundMe page was set up by Mr Ward’s friend and OnlyFans model Bailey Scarlett to raise money for his surgery and medical evacuation back to Melbourne.
In photos taken in the aftermath of the crash, Mr Ward’s 155cc Yamaha NMax motorcycle lies crumpled on the side of the road.
In another, Mr. Akimenko’s bicycle is on the sidewalk
A now-deleted update on the page suggested Mr Ward had been injured in a collision, a claim he repeated in comments he made from his hospital bed four days ago.
“They (the police) are trying to find the Russian who hit me because he also hit another person that same night and broke his arm,” Mr Ward said.
But this publication later showed that according to the local police there was no hit-and-run.
Instead, Mr. Ward signed a “peace deal” through an intermediary on Monday to pay damages to Mr. Akimenko to avoid being charged with a traffic violation.
Well-wishers donated more than $40,000 after a GoFundMe page was set up by Mr Ward’s friend and OnlyFans model Bailey Scarlett to raise money for his surgery and medical evacuation back to Melbourne
Daily Mail Australia understands that under the peace deal, Mr Ward agreed to pay just over $1,000 to cover Mr Akimenko’s medical costs and $3,500 to pay for damage to his bicycle.
“It was not a hit-and-run and both sides decided to resolve the matter with a peace agreement,” Badung police chief Teguh Priowarsono said.
There is no suggestion that Ms Scarlett knew the collision had not occurred when she set up GoFundMe.
Daily Mail Australia previously approached Mr Ward and Ms Scarlett for comment on the revelations.
A now-deleted update to the page suggested Mr Ward had been injured in a collision (pictured), a claim he repeated in comments he made from his hospital bed four days ago (below)
Last week, Ms Scarlett shared a breakdown of Mr Ward’s current medical costs on the GoFundMe page, claiming the total bill to date was $39,000.
The same day, Mr Ward shared a quote for aeromedical collection from the Australian Air Ambulance for $180,750 on his Instagram stories.
“Some people have the audacity to say I’m trying to make money on the flight home so here you go,” he captioned the post.
“Don’t think this is necessary in the situation I’m in, but clearly some lowlifes have nothing better to do than (sic) talk.”
On Monday, Mr Ward shared this update from his hospital bed
He also hit back at critics who apparently suggested he was trying to cash in on his flight home
Mr Ward urgently needed a blood transfusion and underwent surgery to have a metal halo splint drilled into his right leg.
“Everything is fine, the operation went well,” Mr Ward said from his hospital bed four days ago.
‘I am having another operation in three weeks, I am currently wearing a Halo and there is no bleeding from the brain. All the blood from my head has stopped, so it’s all looking positive.’
He also thanked friends and family who donated.
Ms Scarlett, an OnlyFans model and influencer, has previously represented Australians in Bali who were in medical crisis.
Previously, she acted as a de facto media spokesperson for baby ‘Lucky”s family.
Mr Ward (pictured left) will have a metal halo brace drilled into his leg, requiring him to use a wheelchair for months
Bailey Scarlett, an OnlyFans model and actress, has set up the GoFundMe page for her boyfriend Mr Ward. She also acted as de facto media spokesperson for Baby Lucky’s parents Honey and Pan Ahimsa in February. There is no suggestion that Ms Scarlett knew the collision had not occurred when she set up the GoFundMe organisation.
In February, the family captured the hearts of the nation when Lucky’s mother, Honey Ahimsa, made a desperate attempt to arrange a medical evacuation.
Her then seven-week-old daughter had to fly back to Australia for life-saving care that is not available in Indonesia.
Ms Ahimsa, a wellbeing influencer and mother of two originally from Melbourne, said doctors in Bali gave her baby a 50 per cent chance of survival.
Within days, nearly $200,000 was raised by kind-hearted donors who rallied behind the stranded family as Lucky battled sepsis, severe pneumonia, lung failure and RSV bronchiolitis.
She was flown to Brisbane on a medical flight in February and doctors treated her successfully.
A few months later, in July, Daily Mail Australia revealed that Ms Ahmisa and her partner Pan, along with Lucky and their other young child, have returned to Bali where they are renovating a house.