Two drivers were sentenced after a fatal Henry Hudson Parkway crash.
Going to Work
Drivers Marcos Vega-Pagan and Cary Brown were sentenced after prosecutors alleged that Vega-Pagan struck motorcyclist Joel Quintana and Brown ran over him during a southbound race on the Henry Hudson Parkway; the official record lists one person killed in the Aug. 3, 2023, crash.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
Prosecutors alleged that Marcos Vega-Pagan, driving a BMW, struck Joel Quintana from behind during a southbound race on the Henry Hudson Parkway, throwing him from his motorcycle; they said Cary Brown, in a Mercedes, then ran over Quintana. Prosecutors alleged both drivers fled. Press accounts say medics took Quintana to Harlem Hospital. The official record lists one person killed in the Aug. 3, 2023, crash. Our Town later reported that both drivers pleaded guilty to reduced charges and received prison terms.
Prosecutors alleged a race led to two impacts.
Manhattan prosecutors alleged that Vega-Pagan, driving a BMW, struck Quintana from behind and threw him from his motorcycle. They said Brown, driving a Mercedes, then ran over Quintana, and both drivers fled. Prosecutors alleged the drivers were racing south at speeds of up to 90 mph.
A CBS police account also described a driver in a gray BMW hitting Quintana from behind, followed by a driver in a Mercedes hitting him after he was thrown into the center lane.
Reports place the crash near different cross streets.
The official record places the crash on the Henry Hudson Parkway at 10:52 p.m. on Aug. 3, 2023. The Daily News reported 10:57 p.m. near West 145th Street; CBS placed it just before 11 p.m. near 158th Street. Both reports described southbound lanes.
Quintana was a father of six and a hotel manager.
Joel Quintana, 42, lived in Inwood, was a father of six and managed at Loews Regency Hotel, Our Town reported. The outlet said he was riding his 2022 Honda GROM to work that night.
Patch reported that Quintana's sister, Carolina Rodriguez, told the Daily News that his six-year-old son kept asking for him: "He keeps asking for his dad." Patch also reported that Quintana left a wife and six children.
The case ended in guilty pleas and prison terms.
The Daily News reported that police arrested Brown on Aug. 31, 2023. Prosecutors later indicted Brown and Vega-Pagan on manslaughter, assault, criminally negligent homicide and leaving-the-scene charges, amNewYork reported.
Our Town reported that both men pleaded guilty to reduced charges and were sentenced for criminally negligent homicide and leaving the scene without reporting. Vega-Pagan received a prison term of three years and eight months to 11 years; Brown received three to nine years.