Pedestrian Struck Dead in Industrial Bushwick
A pickup truck driver ran over and killed a Brooklyn man along a poorly designed industrial street in Bushwick — and cops blamed the victim for crossing “mid block.”
The fatal crash occurred on Friday at around 5 p.m. as Jose Rubi, 51, was on Maspeth Avenue in the area where it becomes dominated by truck drivers. Cops say the 46-year-old driver of a 2015 Ford pickup was traveling eastbound on Maspeth and attempted to make a left onto Vandervoort Avenue, where struck Rubi. Police said Rubi was “crossing mid-block,” but it is not clear how cops made that determination.
“The driver said he was making a left turn onto Vandervoort and he did not see the pedestrian crossing the street,” a police spokesman said.
The driver remained at the scene. Rubi was taken to Woodhull Hospital, where he died from his injuries.
“There are no arrests and the investigation is ongoing,” police said in a statement.
Since January, 2016, five motorists, two pedestrians and one cyclist have been injured in five crashes on just the one block of Maspeth between Vandervoort and Morgan avenues. The roadway changes dramatically from residential to industrial east of Morgan, where Rubi was killed.
