Video shows New York City police chase end in mayhem as driver hits people on sidewalk while escaping
NEW YORK -- A wild police chase captured on video in New York City ended Sunday when a driver plowed his car into a group of pedestrians on a sidewalk.
Two people were hospitalized in the crash at the corner of 80th Street and Northern Boulevard in Jackson Heights, Queens.
Police said the driver ditched the white BMW and fled on foot, but a person believed to be a passenger in the car being pursued was taken into custody.
The driver has not yet been caught.
Driver crashed 2 miles from scene of traffic stop, NYPD says
It started just before 2 a.m. Sunday, when officers were conducting a traffic stop in Astoria, two miles from the scene of the crash.
According to police, the suspect took off when officers tried pulling him over for a reason they did not reveal.
The driver of the BMW crashed into an FDNY call box, which likely prevented him from colliding into a restaurant.
A total of four people were hit, but police say only two of them were hospitalized -- a 23-year-old man with a laceration to the leg and a 28-year-old woman with back pain. They are both listed in stable condition.
One man who lives on the block was delighted to learn no one was seriously injured.
"I hear a noise and when I wake up, I look through my window outside and saw so many people and so many police," the man said.
"It all sounds very crazy. I hope they bring everyone to justice," Jackson Heights resident Danny Rojas said.
Anyone with any information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.
