The livery cab driver who ran over four children and a woman on a Bronx sidewalk Wednesday blamed the car he was driving.
The driver, identified as Bialo Daillo, spoke with WNBC yesterday.
... Daillo ... said he was heartbroken by the accident. The driver said he stepped on the break [sic] and the car wouldn't stop. He said he feels fine physically, but is sad for those who were injured.
"I just care about the other people; I'm not bleeding. I'm sorry for the other people," Daillo said. "Nobody wants that. Nobody wants this. I don't know what happened."
Daillo was driving a Toyota Camry. Video posted by WNBC shows him speed toward the intersection of Valentine Avenue and E. Kingsbridge Road, drive over a raised median, re-enter the roadway, jump the curb a second time and crash into a building where a group of children were waiting for a school bus. In the video the brake lights of the car don't appear to activate until after Daillo is on the sidewalk where the victims were standing.
Three of the victims were a 33-year-old woman and her two kids. Two other children were also hurt. According to WNBC, an 8-year-old girl who was pinned under the car was in intensive care at Jacobi Hospital with a broken pelvis and broken legs.
Daillo, who according to the Taxi and Limousine Commission has held a for-hire vehicle license since 1998, works for Uber. Uber told Streetsblog he did not drive for the company yesterday. The TLC suspended Daillo from driving a cab pending the outcome of the NYPD investigation. Unless he is convicted of a crime or traffic offense, he will likely be reinstated by the TLC.
Immediately after the crash, anonymous police sources told the Post "no criminality was suspected." No charges were filed yesterday. The NYPD public information office could not provide an update on the case this afternoon.
The crash occurred in the 52nd Precinct, and in the City Council district represented by Ritchie Torres.
Mayor de Blasio's office sent a statement on the crash today, after I asked for one. It did not say the mayor planned to take any action relevant to the crash, such as directing DOT to inspect the site or reform rules that allow cab drivers who harm people to retain TLC licenses.
See prior Streetsblog coverage of yesterday's crash here, here, and here.
