A 38-year-old man was charged with murder after police say he drove a sport-utility vehicle onto a Queens sidewalk early Saturday and fatally struck a 16-year-old girl following a verbal confrontation.
The victim, identified by authorities as Jhoanny Gomez-Alvarez, was pronounced dead at the scene outside a bar in the Elmhurst neighborhood after the driver, Edwin Cruz-Gomez of Uniondale, allegedly drove his 2009 Chevrolet Suburban onto the sidewalk and pinned the girl against a pillar, according to police. Cruz-Gomez faces a slate of charges that include murder, attempted murder, assault, vehicular manslaughter, driving while intoxicated and operating as an unlicensed driver.
Police said the confrontation began around 4 a.m. near the intersection of Roosevelt Avenue and Benham Street when Cruz-Gomez, described by authorities as heavily intoxicated, made lewd remarks to the teen and her companions. A heated exchange followed involving the teen, her boyfriend, her mother and the mother’s friend, police said. Moments later, investigators allege, Cruz-Gomez got behind the wheel and drove up on the sidewalk, striking the girl and then hitting her mother, who is 32 and was taken to Elmhurst Hospital in stable condition.
Cruz-Gomez was arrested at the scene. Police said his blood-alcohol concentration measured about twice the New York legal limit. After the collision he also struck a parked vehicle while attempting to flee, officers said. He was taken to a hospital following his arrest; his arraignment was pending Sunday afternoon.
Court records reviewed by authorities and released to the press show Cruz-Gomez had been charged earlier this year with driving while intoxicated after an incident on Jan. 26. His license was suspended following that charge, and six months later Nassau County police cited him for speeding and for driving with a suspended license, records show.
Police said Cruz-Gomez was operating the Suburban while unlicensed. The investigation remains ongoing as detectives work to reconstruct the sequence of events and to determine the full extent of charges related to the crash.
Surveillance footage obtained by news outlets showed the teen leaving her apartment hours before the fatal wreck. A building superintendent who viewed the video described the scene as especially tragic, saying, “It’s difficult to see her alive on that video, knowing she died six hours later. A young woman with so much life.”
The case drew an immediate response from local officers, who cordoned off the area as investigators processed the scene and interviewed witnesses. Authorities did not release further identifying details about the companions who were with the victim or say whether any additional arrests were expected.
Prosecutors will review the investigation before formal charges are presented in court. The investigation is being handled by the New York City Police Department and the Queens District Attorney’s Office, which will determine whether to pursue the full slate of charges listed by police.