A box truck driver, lacking a license plate, has been arrested following a hit-and-run incident involving an off-duty NYPD officer riding his motorcycle home from work, according to police reports.
Authorities identified the driver as 30-year-old Carlos Almanzar Toribio, who was apprehended hours after a violent collision on the westbound Brooklyn Keynes Expressway. This occurred around 8:30 a.m., during which the officer’s motorcycle was struck.
Detectives utilized video footage from the scenes to track down the box truck, leading to Toribio’s arrest around 7:30 p.m., police stated.
The victim, a Washington Heights resident, tragically passed away after leaving the accident site. He was charged with operating an unregistered vehicle and driving without a license plate, according to police.
The officer, an NYPD member assigned to a midnight shift in District 84 (downtown Brooklyn), was riding a Yamaha R1 motorcycle when the collision occurred. Reports indicate he was struck near the 27th Street area around 8:30 a.m.
Footage captured just before the crash shows the cyclist riding in the outermost lane of the highway, heading towards the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge.
Witnesses claimed the box truck driver fled the scene, possibly unaware that he had hit someone.
Further information shared on social media displayed the aftermath, highlighting the tragic scene where the officer lay unresponsive on the road.
The officer, whose identity hasn’t yet been released while family notifications are pending, was taken to NYU Langone Brooklyn Hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. From online records, it appears he joined the NYPD in February 2021.
