A grieving mother has expressed her forgiveness toward the driver who fatally struck her son in a hit-and-run incident. Kellyanne Stevens described her son, 27-year-old Shariq Bryant, as an “angel” who devoted himself to caring for his autistic brother and uplifting those around him.
According to police and family members, Bryant was visiting friends in the Bronx over the weekend when he was hit by a 2025 BMW M8 at the intersection of East 222nd Street and Boston Road around 12:15 a.m. on Saturday.
The driver crashed into a utility pole and fled on foot, leaving Bryant and an injured passenger behind in the wrecked vehicle, the NYPD reported.
Bryant, an IT technician from Connecticut, was taken to Jacobi Medical Center, where he succumbed to serious injuries.
Stevens urged the driver to come forward, saying, “I forgive you.” She emphasized the loss, stating, “You took a wonderful man away from his family.” She believes that divine guidance will lead the driver to turn himself in.
Despite the tragedy, Stevens noted that her son was eager to celebrate the upcoming holiday with his two younger brothers, one of whom is autistic. “He wants me to make sure they have a good Christmas,” she said, emotion evident in her voice. “He has already started buying presents.”
“He always put a smile on my face,” she recalled, adding that he had a unique ability to lift her spirits.
A family friend, 21-year-old Tanya Montgomery, echoed these sentiments, calling Bryant an “adopted brother” who had a quirky habit of nibbling on food when dining out in New York. She questioned why such a tragedy happened to him, noting, “He had a crazy laugh that was contagious. Even if it wasn’t funny, hearing him laugh made you laugh too.”
