A showdown between drivers on a Manhattan street, which appeared to start as a routine fender bender, turned deadly after one driver allegedly responded to a tire slashing by mowing down the other man.
Police say the fatal altercation started when the drivers of a Jetta sedan with Virginia license plates and a Chevy Silverado bumped into each other on East 60th Street between Park Avenue and Lexington Avenue on the Upper East Side.
Things escalated rapidly as a heated argument broke out between the two male drivers, prompting the man behind the wheel of the pickup truck — later identified as 54-year-old Roberto Velez Alvarez — to step out and pull out a knife. He used the knife to slash two of the tires on the Jetta, police said.
The second driver, 28-year-old Andre Mosby, allegedly responded by stepping on the accelerator and running over Alvarez, pinning him up against the wall of a building. Video from the scene shows the frantic moments as first responders carried Alvarez to an ambulance. He was rushed to a hospital but did not survive his injuries.
Broken glass was seen scattered all around the smashed sedan in the aftermath of the incident. Mosby, who officers said was traveling with his wife and two children in the car, stayed at the scene and was taken into custody by police. He was arrested and charged with manslaughter and assault.
Officials said the three passengers inside his car at the time were taken to a hospital for evaluation.
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