A 10-year-old boy and his toddler brother have been killed in a hit-and-run car crash in Wolverhampton.

Sanjay Singh and his 23-month-old brother, Pawanveer, died when their mother’s BMW was hit at speed by an Audi S3 whose driver then fled the scene.

Witnesses said the Audi had been racing a Bentley convertible at high speed before the collision in Wolverhampton on Thursday night.

The boys’ mother was seriously injured and remained in hospital on Friday as relatives appealed for the public’s help to trace the Audi driver.

“Our family are grieving over the tragic deaths of our two beautiful children, as well as dealing with the shock of the horrific crash,” they said in a statement. “We appeal to the general public to come forward as witnesses in order to help police find the perpetrator who fled from the scene and to bring him or her to justice.

“At this time we would appreciate some privacy and space to grieve over our precious loss.”

The collision happened on Birmingham New Road at the junction with Lawnswood Avenue, at about 8.45pm on Thursday.

A 31-year-old man alleged to have been driving the six-litre Bentley Continental was arrested at the scene on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving. He was later released pending further investigation.

DS Paul Hughes of West Midlands police appealed directly to the Audi driver to come forward, saying: “You may not be fully aware of the full tragic circumstances but you now need to speak to us.”

Witnesses said the Bentley driver initially left the accident scene after being confronted by onlookers who accused him of racing with the Audi before the collision.

Tanveer Hussain, a witness, said: “The guy in the Bentley left and then came back. I said to him: ‘You are responsible for this.’ He kept pleading to me: ‘It’s not my fault.’ There were a lot of people saying to him: ‘It’s your fault,’ and he was getting agitated.”

Describing how two cars had passed him at speed, Hussain said: “I was further up the road … and two cars overtook me. If I am doing 35 to 40, they were doing much more. I got out of my car and other lads tended to the children. What I saw was terrible. It was too much. The mother was just in shock.”