Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Carnage

UPDATE: Cops Say They Have Arrested Driver Who Killed Anastasia Diaz on Staten Island

12:31 PM EDT on April 23, 2019

Cops caught the driver who killed Anastasia Diaz by piecing together surveillance footage. File photo: NYPD

Updated | Police say they have arrested the driver who fled after running over and killing a Staten Island pedestrian — a collar that came hours after cops asked the public to help find the criminal.

Johnson Kim, 74, was arrested for killing of Anastasia Diaz, 89, late Saturday at the corner of Bradley and Purdy avenues in the Castleton Corners section of the Rock. Cops say Kim slammed into Diaz after she stepped off a city bus with her sisters, then kept on driving.

Kim was charged with the serious charge of leaving the scene of a crash and tampering with physical evidence — cops say he repaired his damaged Toyota Sienna, though police did not specify the extent of the damage.

Police spokesmen offered no details about how the NYPD determined that the Sienna was the murder vehicle beyond both saying it was "good police work." A timestamp from the video indicates that the car was caught on camera almost an hour before the 10:29 p.m. crash. Matching the video up to street view images on Google maps shows that the video was taken by a camera affixed to the side of Engine 163/Ladder 83 at the corner of Jewett and Crowell avenues.

That location is several blocks away from the crash site.

Arrests for leaving the scene of a crash are rare on Staten Island. In 2018, there were 168 hit-and-run crashes on Staten Island, resulting in just 16 arrests, police statistics show.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Wednesday’s Headlines: Concerted Effort Edition

The Great Lawn will be closed to the public six weeks earlier than normal because of those damn rockers. Plus other news.

October 4, 2023

Broadway Vision: Watch 15 Years of Transformation in a Single Streetfilm

It's hard to see the big picture of just what has been accomplished between Times and Union squares. That's where Clarence Eckerson Jr. comes in.

October 4, 2023

What Do ‘Livable’ Streets Look Like in an Era of Driverless Cars?

In today's Brake podcast, Kea Wilson asks Bruce Appleyard what future livable streets have in a world of autonomous cars.

October 4, 2023

NYPD Steps Up Effort Against Illegal Mopeds, But Some Advocates Want a Different Approach

The NYPD seized some illegal wheels from delivery workers in the middle of their route on Wednesday, part of a stepped-up effort.

October 4, 2023

Astoria Organizers Lead the Way on Street Safety with a Reddit Strategy

The western Queens neighborhood has become a hub for a new kind of safe street advocacy.

October 3, 2023
See all posts