Hit-Run Driver Fatally Injures Pedestrian in Longwood
A driver in a reported stolen 2008 Ford van fatally hit 56-year-old Alhadji Fofana at Westchester Avenue and East 163rd Street at 6:31 a.m. on Sept. 25, 2024, then tried to set the Ford on fire and fled on foot, police told the Post.
What We Know
According to the police report, a driver in a Ford SUV traveling north on Westchester Avenue hit a 56-year-old man who was crossing East 163rd Street in a marked crosswalk on a Wednesday morning. The pedestrian sustained crush injuries to his entire body and died at the scene. Police recorded the SUV as going straight ahead at the time of impact.
A morning crossing turned fatal
The official record places the crash at Westchester Avenue and East 163rd Street in the Bronx at 6:31 a.m. on Sept. 25, 2024, and records one pedestrian death with no other injuries. The record describes the pedestrian as a 56-year-old man at the intersection, crossing with no signal in a marked crosswalk.
Westchester Avenue has seen repeated harm
The crash happened at Westchester Avenue and East 163rd Street in Longwood. Along Westchester Avenue in the Bronx, CrashCountNYC’s location review shows 1,543 crashes, 1,023 injuries, 97 serious injuries and 7 deaths since 2022.
Reports differ on the Ford’s body type
The official crash record lists a 2008 Ford classified as a station wagon or sport utility vehicle, traveling north and going straight ahead before the crash, with right-front bumper impact and damage. The Post and Daily News both described the Ford as a van; the Post also reported, citing police, that it was stolen and had stolen plates.
Police said the driver fled after trying to burn the Ford
The Post reported that investigators said the driver tried to set the Ford on fire, abandoned it, and fled on foot. As of the Post’s Thursday afternoon report, police had not caught the driver. The Daily News also reported that the driver had not been caught.