A new video shows New York Police chasing a moped (or scooter) before its 17-year old rider crashes violently into a guard rail. This is already the second dangerous interaction between the NYPD and a scooter that is making headlines this year.
The incident reportedly took place on Wednesday, and a bystander managed to capture the scene on their mobile phone. In the short video, the rider and the marked Ford Explorer police cruiser can be observed on a pathway adjacent to the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. The footage swiftly transitions from a camera positioned behind the chase to one positioned near the conclusion of the event.
In that shot we see the rider approach a small parking lot where the camera person is. It seems that as they attempt to ride over a curb they lose control of the scooter. As a result, the two-wheel vehicle slides out of control and hits a guard rail. The rider somehow manages to avoid becoming pinned between the objects and actually runs off.
More: Reckless NYPD Officer Caught On Video Trying To Intentionally Collide With Moped Rider
Police catch the suspect almost immediately but the video calls into question their method of nabbing the rider. Clearly, there’s a huge discrepancy between the weight and force that any police car, much more an SUV can exert when compared to a human on a scooter. The cruiser is incredibly close to the scooter when it loses control suggesting that it might have even bumped it.
What did the NYPD say?
According to a report from the NY Daily News, an NYPD spokesperson stated that the incident occurred on Wednesday and is currently “under internal review”. The teenage rider, who suffered minor injuries, remained hospitalized as of Friday. The spokesperson mentioned that the rider was subsequently apprehended on the Bay Ridge Promenade, with charges pending.
The police said that officers made an attempt to stop the moped near Bensonhurst Park along Shore Parkway and Bay Parkway. However, the rider of the moped allegedly disregarded the signal to stop and accelerated away from the scene.
In another video from May of this year, an NYPD officer is seen seemingly attempting to herd or force a scooter rider off of the road. As we noted when we told you about that story initially, the officer never utilized their emergency lights or sirens in an attempt to lawfully pull over the citizen.
It’s unclear in the video whether or not the officer actually bumps the moped but that might be the case. Regardless of whether or not the car makes contact with the moped, the optics aren’t great. Nobody wants to see a criminal escape justice but there’s little doubt that far more serious injury was narrowly avoided here.