A man is in custody after police say he injured 10 people with a stolen car while trying to evade police in Midtown on Tuesday, according to the NYPD.
At around 5:30 p.m., police officers were alerted to a reportedly stolen car — a 2018 Hyundai Tucson — on the corner of 45th Street and Second Avenue via their license plate reader, NYPD Detective James Kehoe told reporters at a news conference. The vehicle had been reported stolen from the Bronx the day before.
The cops began to follow the car and attempted to stop the driver, police said. At first, it seemed like the 20-year-old driver was pulling over, but he continued on to Lexington Avenue, where he struck a bicyclist between 42nd and 43rd streets, Kehoe said. He then continued driving, colliding with a 2016 Nissan yellow taxi on Lexington Avenue and 42nd Street before mounting the sidewalk and striking several pedestrians.
After that, the suspect started driving the wrong way on Lexington Avenue where he wound up hitting a 2021 Toyota RAV4, Kehoe said.
The driver of the stolen car was detained by civilians and held until cops arrived and arrested him, Kehoe said. The suspect did not have a New York State driver’s license, police said.
In total, 10 people were injured, though all were in stable condition, FDNY Deputy Chief Mario Thompkins said.
“All non-critical, non-life threatening injuries,” Thompkins said. “The most severe being an ankle fracture to a young lady and the others were just minor abrasions and neck and back pain. Other than that, they were removed to local hospitals and being evaluated there.”
The incident does not appear to have any connection to terrorist activity upon an initial review, according to police. An investigation was ongoing.
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