Wrong-way driver injures 7 pedestrians, one officer in New Year’s Day police chase

(NEW YORK) — A driver fleeing an early New Year’s Day dispute struck seven pedestrians and injured one police officer before crashing on a New York City sidewalk in midtown Manhattan, according to police.

The driver, Mohamed Alaouie, of Fort Lee, New Jersey, was charged with three counts of attempted murder, reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a controlled substance, leaving an accident with a serious injury and driving while intoxicated, police said Tuesday.

The 44-year-old suspect was said to be in his vehicle in a dispute with another man at the intersection of West 33rd Street and 7th Avenue. Officers were investigating a possible crime in the area around 1:30 a.m. Monday morning when they attempted to intervene in the altercation.

Authorities said the suspect fled police and drove north — the wrong way — on the one-way avenue, striking multiple vehicles before fleeing at a high rate of speed westbound onto the sidewalk of West 34th Street.

During the blockslong driving spree, authorities said the driver struck a food truck that pinned a 39-year-old female pedestrian underneath it, police said. He also struck at least six other pedestrians. They were all taken to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition.

One police officer was transported to NYU Langone Medical Center for minor injuries and is in stable condition.

The driver was transported to Bellevue Hospital in critical but stable condition, authorities said.

The investigation is ongoing.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.