A 44-year-old New Jersey man has been indicted in connection with a vehicular rampage in Manhattan that injured nine pedestrians, including "Black Panther" stuntwoman Carrie Bernans, and a police officer, on New Year's Day.
Mohamed Alaouie is charged with assault, aggravated vehicular assault, reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the frenzy that tore through midtown shortly after the ball drop to ring in 2024.
According to court documents and on-the-record statements, Alaouie and his girlfriend sitting inside his BMW sedan near Seventh Avenue and West 33rd Street after spending time at a bar earlier in the evening. A bystander notified cops around 1:30 a.m. that Alaouie was attacking the woman, and the officer told Alaouie to put his vehicle in park.
He instead reversed, allegedly, and drove onto the sidewalk of West 33rd Street, which was full of dozens of people. Court papers say he hit one victim before reentering the roadway and turning north onto Seventh Avenue, which runs southbound. The mother of that victim identified her as Bernans in a social media post. She had been dining outdoors in the crowd at the time of the crash and suffered multiple broken bones and teeth, her family previously said.
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Alaouie drove one block the wrong way before turning onto West 34th Street, with officers in pursuit on foot. He got stuck in traffic and started ramming vehicles in front of and behind him, prosecutors allege. Then he allegedly accelerated and hit a food cart on the sidewalk, which hit three pedestrians and pinned two others underneath it.
The 44-year-old sped off again, driving onto the sidewalk and westbound on 34th Street, crossing Eighth Avenue and eventually returning to the road between Eighth and Ninth avenues, where he hit several other vehicles, prosecutors say. Alaouie also hit three more pedestrians and one police officer who was trying to stop him on foot.
His vehicle eventually broke down after crashing into another car and police were able to arrest him. Cocaine was recovered at the scene, and from his pants at the hospital the following day, investigators said.
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Alaouie's girlfriend was noticeably injured when she jumped out of the vehicle at some point during his spree, prosecutors say. One of the pedestrians was concussed, and another remains in constant pain from injuries to her elbow joint, according to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office.
One of the two victims pinned under the food cart suffered skin and tissue tears from metal on the cart. That individual now needs physical therapy to be able to walk without assistance.
Attorney information for Alaouie, of Fort Lee, wasn't immediately available.
"This defendant allegedly careened through packed sidewalks and streets during the busiest time of the year in midtown," Bragg said in a statement announcing the indictment Tuesday. "His recklessness endangered the lives of countless New Yorkers and visitors who were ringing in the New Year. I hope the victims can fully recover from their injuries and thank the police officers who were on the scene to apprehend this individual.”
