NYPD: Driver arrested after running red light, striking pedestrians in Manhattan, crashing in Queens

By Alice Gainer, Elijah Westbrook

Updated on: August 21, 2023 / 6:17 PM / CBS New York

NEW YORK -- New video Monday night shows a driver plowing into people standing on a sidewalk in Midtown.

It happened late Sunday night.

More than a half dozen people are recovering Monday.

Police said right now they don't believe the 29-year-old female driver was intoxicated, but they are investigating whether it was intentional.

The video shows the moment police said a driver veered off the road and onto the sidewalk, knocking down seven people, sending bodies flying into the air.

The video shows that, after the impact, the driver drove off just as quickly as she struck. It happened at 36th Street and Sixth Avenue just before midnight.

"I'm here inside. And I'm here, and I use the phone and go outside, and a car coming through very fast, and push it," witness Shahzaib Arshad said. "People mangled. There was lots of blood."

Filmmaker Connor Hopkins described the aftermath. His crew had a medic, who assisted.

"I came into the scene. There were people strung out. I thought there was a shooting. One of the people on our team was a medic, thank God, did triage until the medics got there," Hopkins said.

Police said the 29-year-old female driver continued to the Queens Midtown Tunnel. When she exited the tunnel, she crashed into a car. Police said no-one was injured. It happened near the LIE and the Clearview Expressway. She was arrested and taken to the hospital for evaluation.

Charges are pending.

Six men and one woman were injured. They range in age from 24-60, and have various head and arm injuries. The most serious injury, police said, is a 34-year-old woman listed in critical but stable condition.

The investigation is ongoing.

Alice Gainer joined CBS2 as a reporter and anchor in January 2013. She covers breaking, feature and general assignment stories.

First published on August 21, 2023 / 5:19 AM

NEW YORK