The MTA bus driver accused of fleeing the scene after hitting and killing a 70-year-old woman as she tried to cross a Brooklyn street had his license suspended following his arraignment Wednesday on a felony charge of leaving the scene of an accident, among other offenses.
Bail for Paul Roper was set at $20,000 cash as his lawyer contested the charges. He has been suspended without pay by the MTA pending the outcome of the investigation.
Roper was allegedly behind the wheel of the MTA bus captured on disturbing surveillance video hitting and killing Carol Bell Tuesday, then driving away. According to a criminal complaint, Roper struck Bell, then drove over her; a witness saw Bell's body, her head severely mangled, her internal organs exposed, on the pavement when the bus sped away.
Roper stopped for less than 5 seconds before driving off and never got out of the bus, according to the criminal complaint.
"If he knew it was a person I know he would have stopped," Roper's sister-in-law told NBC 4 New York. "But you got to think, he's driving a big bus -- a lot of weight. He probably thought it was trash, who knows? I don't think he should be penalized or treated as a monster because he's not that type of person at all."
"He just said it was an accident. He didn't know what happened," Roper's wife, Sonia, added. "I said, 'You alright?' He said, 'Yeah, I'm OK.' But then he said, 'Um, they found blood on the wheels.'"
Video obtained by NBC 4 New York shows Bell in a green sweatshirt standing on the side of the road at Fulton and Sackman streets in Ocean Hill, waiting for cars to go by.
As she starts to use her walker to move across the street, the bus, which is not in service, pulls into the intersection from across the street and moves to make a left turn in her direction.
The bus plows into her just as she crosses the double yellow line, sending both the woman and her walker flying. The bus stops briefly, the video shows, then pulls around the victim and drives off down the street.
The MTA said the bus was returning to the East New York depot after finishing a B15 run at the time of the crash. The agency says its investigation is ongoing.
Roper's attorney said in court Wednesday the particular model of bus his client was driving has a blind spot on the left pillar.
Local
Roper has been driving for the MTA for 15 years. He has been arrested by the NYPD in three separate cases in the past, NBC 4 New York has learned, but those cases are sealed. Roper's attorney says his client has never been convicted of a crime.
