What to Know
- Police have arrested the hit-and-run driver who killed a 29-year-old Manhattan man visiting friends in Queens Sunday
- The victim, Niklas Ahern of Tribeca, was crossing Continental Avenue in Forest Hills when a sedan hit him, sending him flying
- The suspected driver, 28-year-old Irving Duran of Queens, was arrested Tuesday
A 29-year-old Manhattan man visiting friends in Queens was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver Sunday evening, police say.
The victim, Niklas Ahern, was crossing Continental Avenue in Forest Hills at about 5:30 p.m. when a four-door gray or silver sedan hit him, sending him flying into the air. Witnesses said the force was so great he was knocked out of his shoes.
He was taken to North Shore Hospital, where he died.
Police announced late Monday they arrested 28-year-old Irving Duran of Queens in the deadly accident. Attorney information for him wasn't immediately available; cops said he is charged with leaving the scene of a vehicle accident resulting in death.
Ahern's neighbors in Tribeca were devastated to hear he was killed. Friends said he was still trying to focus his life and had hopes of becoming a real estate agent.
"He was always very happy and respectable kid," said Paul Staffile. "Very quiet. I can't say a bad thing about him."
"All I did was cry," said Patricia Harris, who's known Ahern and his mother for decades. "There were no words to be spoken, you just cry and hug and show love."
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She said Ahern's mother was "just in shock and numb."
"Here's hoping time will heal all wounds," said Harris.
People living in the quiet, suburban area of the hit-and-run said drivers are constantly going faster than they should.
"There's a light and a stop sign," said one resident. "People will go through the stop sign and try to speed through the block."
