A hefty bald man in a bright orange coat rammed a moped into a 3-year-old girl and dragged the child for several feet in front of the child’s stunned mother as he rode down a Bronx sidewalk, cops said Saturday.
The child suffered a fractured skull and scratches and bruises to her face, authorities said. Police have released images of the man involved in the hit-and-run hoping someone recognizes him.
The child, identified as Mylah Rojas, was stepping out of a building near Holland Ave. near Burke Ave. in Williamsbridge at about 1 p.m. Friday when the moped rider zipped by her.
The blue moped, which had stripes on the side, clipped the child as it passed and dragged her for several feet before it toppled over, the child’s panicked mother told ABC Eyewitness News.
“She stepped down the step. I was right behind her and he just came out of nowhere and dragged her,” the child’s mother, Mariel Rojas said. “He fell. Then he got off the scooter and walked toward us but when he saw her face bleeding, that’s when he left.”
EMS was called and transported the child to Jacobi Hospital with minor injuries.
It’s illegal to ride a moped on a city sidewalk, officials said.
Detectives scouring the area recovered surveillance footage of the hit-and-run driver both on the moped and off, without the orange jacket. In a video showing the suspect without his jacket, he’s walking down the street with a slight limp.
Police described the man as dark-skinned with a heavy build. In addition to the orange jacket, the moped rider wore black sweatpants and black sandals.
Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is urged to call NYPD Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
