NYPD officer fatally strikes pedestrian during Queens response
The people she spoiled
NYPD Officer Sudan Osorio was responding to an emergency call when he struck pedestrian Zabina Gafoor at Beach Channel Drive and Bay 32 Street; the official record lists one pedestrian killed and four motorists injured at 8:33 p.m. on February 17, 2023.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
NYPD Officer Sudan Osorio was responding to an urgent call when he and the driver of a Toyota Corolla collided at Beach Channel Drive and Bay 32 Street in Queens on February 17, 2023. The official record lists the crash at 8:33 p.m., with one pedestrian killed and four motorists injured. The Daily News, recounting a state investigation, said Osorio drove more than 70 mph in a 25-mph zone and crossed into the opposing lane to pass as the Corolla turned left. News accounts differ on the order of Gafoor's impact and events involving a parked car. The state attorney general's Office of Special Investigation found Osorio responsible for Gafoor's death but said he was not criminally liable and declined charges.
An emergency response at Beach Channel Drive
The official record places the crash at Beach Channel Drive and Bay 32 Street in Queens at 8:33 p.m. on February 17, 2023. It records one pedestrian killed and four motorists injured.
The Daily News, describing the state investigation, said Osorio crossed into the opposing lane to pass a Toyota Corolla as its driver turned left. It reported that Osorio was driving more than 70 mph in a 25-mph zone. Earlier accounts also described an attempted pass as the Corolla turned, but did not include the later investigation's reported speed.
Reports differ on the order of later impacts
amNewYork and CBS reported that Osorio struck Gafoor before a subsequent impact involving a parked car. amNewYork identified it as an unoccupied 2020 Honda Accord. The New York Post instead placed the parked-car impact before the vehicle crossed the curb and Gafoor was struck. The Daily News said the Explorer slid across the intersection and Gafoor was struck there, but did not detail where the parked car fit in the sequence.
The vehicles involved
amNewYork described the police vehicle as a marked Ford Explorer carrying four officers. It identified the civilian car as a 2020 Toyota Corolla driven by a 44-year-old woman, and the parked vehicle as an unoccupied 2020 Honda Accord.
Gafoor was a home health aide
The Daily News later identified the pedestrian as Zabina Gafoor, 52, and reported that she was a home health aide on her way to work. CBS reported that witness Kevin Garcia had been told she was a home attendant heading home from work, so the accounts differ on her destination.
Garcia told CBS that officers tried to help Gafoor. He recalled, "From there, we said a prayer. God bless her and her family,"
Reports differed about where Gafoor died
CBS and amNewYork reported that Gafoor was taken to Jamaica Hospital and died there; the New York Post said she was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. The later Daily News account said she died at the scene despite CPR.
The Daily News reported in December 2024 that the state attorney general's Office of Special Investigation found Osorio responsible for Gafoor's death but concluded he was not criminally liable and declined to pursue criminal charges. CBS and the Daily News reported that the Corolla driver was not injured; amNewYork and CBS said the four officers suffered minor injuries.
Where
BEACH CHANNEL DRIVE and BAY 32 STREET