What to Know
- Adrian Blanc, an executive chef at a Murray Hill restaurant, was killed by a hit-and-run driver in Union Square last November
- Police said Tuesday they've arrested 23-year-old Xavier Ward in the hit-and-run
- Blanc was less than a month away from getting married when he was struck and killed
Police say they've arrested a 23-year-old Brooklyn man in the hit-and-run death of a Manhattan executive chef who was killed less than a month from his wedding.
Xavier Ward is facing charges of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, leaving the scene of an accident with failure to show license and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, police said.
It wasn't immediately clear whether Ward has an attorney who could comment on his behalf.
Ward is accused of mowing down 34-year-old Adrian Blanc while he was walking in a crosswalk in Union Square last November.
Footage from the scene released by police shows the SUV -- a Jeep Renegade -- heading down an empty East 14th Street and quickly making a turn onto Union Square East. That's when the SUV clips the man, knocking him to the ground.
The vehicle doesn't appear to slow down -- but its brake lights briefly come on -- as it drags Blanc a few feet before speeding off.
Local
The SUV was later found, but the driver remained on the loose until his arrest Tuesday.
Blanc's older brother, Agner Blanc, said the 34-year-old was an executive chef at Hill and Bay, a restaurant in Murray Hill, and was on his way home from his shift when he was hit.
"He had his whole future, his whole life ahead of him," said Agner Blanc.
Adrian Blanc was less than a month away from a destination wedding in Venezuela, according to his brother.
