Police are looking for the driver of a dark sedan who fled the scene after striking and killing Carlos Carlo, 65, as he tried to cross Rockaway Boulevard at 137th Avenue in the Rochdale section of Queens at approximately 12:30 a.m. last night.
Police say Carlo was returning home after getting off an MTA bus, according to the Daily News, though his daughter, Melissa Martin, told the Post that he was returning from a leisure walk. Her father often walked to lower his cholesterol and improve his health, she said.
The driver was traveling northbound in the right lane when the crash occurred. When first responders arrived, Carlo was unconscious with body trauma. He was transported to Jamaica Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Rockaway Boulevard has two lanes in each direction. Instead of a pedestrian refuge, there is a center turn lane down the middle of the road. The intersection with 137th Avenue does not have a traffic signal; the nearest striped crosswalks are blocks away at Conduit Avenue or 134th Avenue.
Carlo, a retired limousine driver who was only three blocks from home when he was killed, leaves behind four children and seven grandchildren, according to WINS.
"I want this person found," Martin told WNBC. "I want the full fource of the law to get him. He's taken away my father. He's taken away the grandfather of my kids."
To face hit-and-run charges in New York State, a driver must know or have reason to know that the crash caused injury. There's no guarantee that police and prosecutors will bring charges, but if they do, "I didn't see him" is a reliable defense for the motorist in court.
This fatal crash occurred within the 113th Precinct. To voice your concerns about neighborhood traffic safety directly to Deputy Inspector Miltiadis Marmara, the commanding officer, go to the next community council meeting. The 113th Precinct council meetings happen at 7 p.m. on the third Monday of the month at the precinct , 167-02 Baisley Boulevard. Call (718) 712-7733 for information.
The location where Carlos Carlo was killed sits on the border of two City Council districts. In December, a 31 year-old man was killed by another hit-and-run driver in City Council District 31, currently a vacant seat. Also in December, Maria Beria was killed by a hit-and-run driver in District 28, represented by Ruben Wills. To encourage Wills to take action to improve street safety in his district and citywide, contact him at 212-788-6850 or 718-206-2068.
