What to Know
- The stunning aftermath of an early morning crash outside the front gates of Yankee Stadium left twisted pieces of metal and debris thrown about in the Bronx
- Police say that just after 5 a.m., a woman two blocks from her home was driving on River Avenue with the green light when she was broadsided by a BMW that ran a red light. The person behind the wheel of the BMW and a passenger took off — leaving the driver of the mangled Mitsubishi helpless and dying in the driver's seat
- Investigators say the car that t-boned the woman's car had paper plates on it. A search inside the car revealed the real license plates – and 20 stolen catalytic converters. Police sources believe the suspects ripped them off overnight
Three men accused of stealing catalytic converters were arrested late Thursday after turning themselves in for the early morning deadly crash outside the front gates Yankee Stadium.
Police say that just after 5 a.m., a woman two blocks from her home was driving on River Avenue with the green light when she was broadsided by a BMW that ran a red light. The stunning aftermath of the crash left pieces of twisted metal and debris thrown about in the Bronx.
The person behind the wheel of the BMW and two passengers took off — leaving the driver of the mangled Mitsubishi helpless and dying in the driver's seat.
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Officials said the three runners turned themselves in at the 44th Precinct, and were subsequently arrested on charges of reckless endangerment, leaving the scene of a deadly accident and criminal possession of stolen property.
Police officers in the subway station heard the crash and called for EMS.
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Although, emergency crews responded and used the jaws of life to pull her out, it was too late. The woman, identified as 69-year-old Cathy Garcia, died at Lincoln Hospital. Her family said she was on her way to work as a medical intake officer for the Department of Correction.
While the family is obviously angry with the two were in the other car, they said they're also upset with the city. That's because they said they didn't receive news of the family matriarch's death until hours later, and afterward tried to locate her body, only to be met with rudeness and no answers.
"To find out that it happened at 5:15 this morning, and just to be notified at 2:30-3 p.m. in the afternoon is horrible," a family member said. "We've gone to several hospitals...no one seems to have an answer."
The police department said that they had notified one family member around noon, and said that the family was combative at the precinct. NYPD officials did not address the issue regarding the location of the body, but the family said later Thursday night that they've been told they can view it Friday morning.
Investigators say the car that T-boned the woman's car had paper plates on it. A search inside the car revealed the real license plates – and 20 stolen catalytic converters. Police sources believe the suspects ripped them off overnight.
Stealing catalytic converters is a lucrative business, because the metals inside are pricey.
NYPD statistics show 5,548 catalytic converters of been stolen so far in 2022 compared to the 1,505 for all of 2021 -- a 269% increase.
