Cops Arrest Upstate Driver Who Killed One, Injured Six, in Chinatown

Swift action by NYPD in a fatal collision that got the mayor's attention.

Here's how the Times covered the carnage.
Here's how the Times covered the carnage.

Police arrested the driver who ran down seven people, killing one, in Chinatown on Monday night, charging him with multiple counts.

Police charged Henry Herman, 70, of Satmar Drive in upstate Monroe, with seven counts of failure to yield, plus failure to exercise due care and driving on a sidewalk after he mowed down the pedestrians on Forsyth Street just south of Canal Street — a popular open-air market near the cycling path entrance to the Manhattan Bridge.

Herman was attempting to parallel park his 2015 Toyota Sienna at around 6:50 p.m. when he accelerated abruptly near a fruit stand, jumped the curb and pinned Chun Zhang, 56 of Queens, against the bridge retaining wall, killing him, police said.

A day later, the scene was still drenched in blood. Photo: Charles Komanoff
A day later, the scene was still drenched in blood. Photo: Charles Komanoff

Six others were injured, two critically and two severely, NYPD Captain Michael Gulinello of the Fifth Precinct said.

Herman’s 2015 Toyota Sienna was the same make, model and year of the car that ran over a pedestrian on Nov. 15 very nearby on the Bowery. The victim in that collision, Ngan Leung, died 11 days later, police said on Monday. Police summonsed that driver for failure to yield. A spokesman for the NYPD declined to say whether the two deaths were linked.

The earlier Chinatown death did not receive any attention from Mayor de Blasio — nor do scores of others that have occurred this year. But just before Herman was arrested, the mayor tweeted about the “terrible car crash.”

“We cannot accept loss of life on our streets as inevitable,” he added.

It is unclear why the mayor commented on this particular crash, but not the others.

Some criticized the mayor.

https://twitter.com/adamfc/status/1067241119921176576

Story was updated at 8:37 a..m. to include the name of the victim.

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

The Weekly Carnage

By Summer Greenstein |
The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle violence across the five boroughs and beyond. For more on the origins and purpose of this column, please read About the Weekly Carnage. Fatal Crashes (2 killed this week, 77 this year, 9 drivers charged*) Flatlands: Motorcyclist Delmar Griffith, 41, Killed By SUV Driver Making […]

NYPD Van Jumps Curb, Kills Chinatown Pedestrian

By Brad Aaron |
A police van struck and killed a pedestrian in Chinatown this morning. Reports say the driver of the NYPD Auxiliary van jumped a curb on Elizabeth Street near the 5th Precinct stationhouse at around 11 a.m., striking a 55-year-old man on the sidewalk. He was later pronounced dead at New York Downtown Hospital. Two officers […]

Van Strikes 14 Pedestrians in Chinatown, Killing Two Children

By Ben Fried |
A delivery van struck 14 people on a Chinatown sidewalk shortly before noon today. Two children are dead and at least one other is in critical condition. From City Room: When the accident occurred, 14 children were being led in a “daisy chain” line, holding onto each other, and accompanied by adult chaperons, along East […]

The Weekly Carnage

By Summer Greenstein |
The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle violence across the five boroughs and beyond. For more on the origins and purpose of this column, please read About the Weekly Carnage. Fatal Crashes (4 Killed This Week, 24 This Year; 0 Drivers Charged*) Hell’s Kitchen: Shu Ying Liu, 69, Killed in Hit-and-Run By Private […]