A 42-year-old neurological surgery professor at Cornell's premier brain and spine center in Manhattan was killed by a hit-and-run driver in a stolen car who then headed the wrong way on two busy streets and slammed into another vehicle head-on before fleeing the scene on foot, police and sources familiar with the investigation said Thursday.
Sergei Musatov, assistant professor of neuroscience in neurological surgery at Weill Cornell Brain and Spine Center on East 68th Street, was riding a bicycle when he was struck and killed late Wednesday by a 2002 Mercedes sedan with Florida plates, police and the sources said.
The vehicle was headed west on East 129th Street at about 11:30 p.m. when it hit several construction barriers and rear-ended the cyclist, who rolled up onto the hood and hit the windshield before falling to the ground, the NYPD says. Musatov, who has published multiple articles on neurosurgery in scientific journals, was found lying in the roadway with trauma to his body.
Musatov, who is from Russia, was pronounced dead at the scene. Weill Cornell Medical College said in a statement it was "saddened to hear of the death of talented scientist and respected colleague Sergei Musatov."
The Mercedes drove off after the impact, then turned left onto Madison Avenue and traveled against traffic, police said. The vehicle then turned right onto East 128th Street, again traveling against traffic, and slammed into a Volkswagen sedan that had been sitting at a traffic light, police said.
The driver of the Mercedes and two passengers ran from the car after that crash, police said. Neither of the occupants of the Volkswagen was injured.
Police said that the Mercedes was seen by state court officers running a red light at 138th Street and Bruckner Boulevard before the fatal hit-and-run. It continued over the Third Avenue Bridge after running the light.
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The vehicle had been stolen from a block in the Bronx where it was normally parked, a friend of the car's owner told NBC 4 New York. The friend said she and other friends staying at the car owner's address realized it was gone Sunday. The car's owner is in Florida so she tried to file a police report, but she wasn't permitted to do so because she is not on the car's registration. The car's owner tried to file a report from Florida but authorities said he had to physically go to the precinct to report it, which is why the car doesn't come up as stolen.
