A 35-year-old man from Harlem has died following a hit and run in Belmont, according to the NYPD, and a Norwood man has been arrested in connection with the incident.

 

Police said that on Friday, Feb. 16, at around 7.39 p.m., police responded to a 911 call regarding a vehicle collision at the intersection of East 183rd Street and Park Avenue.

 

“Upon arrival, officers observed a 35-year-old male conscious and alert,” they said. “EMS responded and transported the male victim to St. Barnabas Hospital where he was subsequently pronounced deceased.”

 

Police said that further investigation determined that the man had been driving a two-wheeled, gas-powered moped southbound on Park Avenue and had been crossing East 183rd Street when he struck the driver side of a black sedan that had been traveling eastbound on East 183rd Street. They said the sedan did not remain at the scene.

 

“The vehicle was last seen making a right turn onto Washington Avenue from East 183rd Street,” police said. The investigation remained ongoing by the NYPD Highway District’s Collision Investigation Squad (CIS) and the deceased was identified as Williams Cruz, 35, of West 144th Street in Harlem.

 

Police later said that pursuant to an ongoing investigation, Emilio Galvan, 25, of Hull Avenue in Norwood was arrested on Saturday, Feb. 17, at noon.

Police said Galvan was charged with leaving the scene of an accident and driving a motor vehicle without insurance.  A person arrested and charged with a crime is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.

 

With CIS investigations, the NYPD handles all criminal aspects of the investigation, while NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) reviews the street design at the locations of such crashes.

 

On Saturday evening, Feb. 17, as reported, there were no injuries arising from a fire which broke out at a nearby auto repair store in Belmont.

 

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).  The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/, on Twitter @NYPDTips.

All calls are strictly confidential.

 

Editor’s Note: An earlier version of the story incorrectly referenced the incident collision location as being in Fordham Heights. In fact, it was in Belmont. We apologize for this error.