Rider swerves to avoid driver; passenger dies in Jamaica crash
Police said a 25-year-old rider swerved to avoid a turning driver at Jamaica Avenue and 146th Street, where the official record places a 12:24 a.m. Dec. 4 crash that killed his 62-year-old passenger and injured one person.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
Police accounts say a 25-year-old operator was traveling east on Jamaica Avenue when he swerved to avoid a driver making a left turn. The Daily News placed the turn off 146th Street; QNS described a turn from westbound Jamaica Avenue onto southbound 146th Street. QNS and Patch said both men were thrown from the vehicle, while the Daily News described the passenger being thrown. The official record places the crash at Jamaica Avenue and 146th Street at 12:24 a.m. on Dec. 4, 2023, with one person killed and one injured, and lists reaction to an uninvolved vehicle as a contributing factor.
Police accounts differ on the turning driver's route.
The Daily News said the eastbound operator swerved right to avoid a driver turning left off 146th Street. QNS said the operator was approaching the intersection on eastbound Jamaica Avenue and swerved right to avoid a driver turning from westbound Jamaica Avenue onto southbound 146th Street. Both attributed their descriptions to police.
QNS and Patch reported that the operator and passenger were thrown from the vehicle after the operator lost control. The Daily News described the passenger being thrown, without saying the operator was also ejected. The official record lists reaction to an uninvolved vehicle as a contributing factor.
Reports give different spellings for the passenger's name.
QNS and Patch identified the passenger as Severo Gonzalez, 62; the Daily News identified him as Sezero Gonzales, also 62. QNS said he lived on 129th Street in Richmond Hill, while the Daily News also described him as a Richmond Hill resident.
QNS and the Daily News reported that the passenger was taken to Jamaica Hospital and died there; Patch said he was pronounced dead at a local hospital. QNS and the Daily News reported that the 25-year-old operator was in stable condition.
Sources use different vehicle descriptions.
The linked official vehicle record lists a 2023 Fly Wing moped carrying two people; the collision-level record classifies the vehicle as a motorcycle. QNS called it a gas-powered moped, the Daily News called it a gas-powered scooter, and Patch used both scooter and moped.
Police continued investigating.
The Daily News reported that the driver the operator swerved to avoid remained at the scene and had not been charged. QNS reported no arrests and said the NYPD Collision Investigation Squad's investigation was ongoing.
Where
JAMAICA AVENUE and 146 STREET