NYPD search for Bronx hit-and-run tow truck driver
The search is on to find the driver of a tow truck involved in a fatal hit-and-run that took the life of a 65-year-old pedestrian in the Wakefield section of the Bronx on Monday.
BRONX – The search is on to find the driver of a tow truck involved in a fatal hit-and-run that took the life of a 65-year-old pedestrian in the Wakefield section of the Bronx on Monday.
The incident happened on Bronxwood Avenue and E. 230th Street at around 12:39 p.m.
Police said 65-year-old S.M. Akhdaruzzamam was walking eastbound on E. 229th Street when he was hit by a tow truck.
Surveillance video shows the moment when the driver made a left-hand turn and then struck the pedestrian.
The driver initially stopped but quickly fled the scene.
“He had the walk sign—why would someone just crush him and run?” said the victim’s distraught daughter, Maria Asrat. “I want justice.”
Witnesses tell FOX 5 that it was bystanders who jumped in and started performing CPR on the man, trying to keep him alive.
“The impact was so loud that I thought it was two vehicles hitting each other, and once I looked up and noticed the guy on the floor, I was just devastated to be honest,” a witness said.
Akhdaruzzamam was taken to Jacobi hospital where he died.
“I heard the impact of the accident and then the driver driving away, and then I saw the guy on the floor,” a witness said. “From there, I tried to follow the car and basically I ended up running into red lights, but I saw the driver run numerous red lights, park the car, and get out and run.”
The NYPD’s Highway Collision investigation squad is investigating the cause of the crash.
This story is developing. Stay with FOX 5 NY for updates.
