Police Chase Ends in Crash, Injuring 8 on Manhattan Sidewalk
NEW YORK — A driver attempting to evade police struck and injured eight people on a sidewalk in Midtown Manhattan overnight Sunday. Cellphone video captured the chaotic scene, showing the out-of-control Mercedes trying to flee NYPD officers before eventually being surrounded near West 34th Street and Ninth Avenue.
The driver had crashed into Boris Torres’s Peruvian restaurant, causing significant damage to the establishment. Torres described the moment police attempted to intervene, saying, “You saw on the video that all of the cops just started breaking the windows of the car and tried to stop the guy and try to get him out of the car.”
The incident unfolded at around 1:30 a.m. Monday when police responded to an altercation on the corner of 33rd and Seventh. As officers approached the 44-year-old man, he sped away, striking several cars and pedestrians while driving the wrong way on 34th Street. The chase ended with the vehicle crashing onto the sidewalk, injuring multiple individuals, including a police officer and a 39-year-old woman who was pinned under a food truck.
Boris Torres, the owner of the restaurant affected by the crash, expressed relief that no one was seriously injured this time, recalling a previous New Year’s Day incident where thieves targeted his business.
The driver, who was arrested at the scene, was taken to Bellevue Hospital in critical condition. Charges against the individual are pending.
The aftermath of the crash has left the business owner unsure of when his restaurant will be able to reopen, as the extent of the damage is assessed, and insurance claims are processed.
Christina Fan, a general assignment reporter for CBS2 News, joined the outlet in the spring of 2019. The investigation into the incident is ongoing, with authorities working to determine the full scope of the damage and hold the driver accountable for their actions.