Dirt Bike Rider Fled After Passenger Died on Rockaway Boardwalk
At about 3:04 p.m. on Aug. 29, 2022, a licensed male motorcycle rider heading west on the Boardwalk near Beach 47th Street crashed, and the Daily News reported that passenger David Molina died as the rider fled on foot.
What We Know
David Molina was riding as the rear passenger on a westbound Qipai dirt bike on the Rockaway Beach Boardwalk shortly after 3 p.m. Police told the Daily News that the 25-year-old rider lost control near Beach 47th Street, hit a bench and a 55-year-old rollerblader, then left on foot. Molina was thrown, hit his head and died on the boardwalk; medics took the rollerblader to Jamaica Hospital with a minor head wound. The city crash record lists one person killed, one person injured, a motorcycle with two occupants, and driver inattention/distraction as a contributing factor. The first Daily News story described the passenger as a man in his 30s, while the city record lists the fatal passenger as 26.
A boardwalk ride ended in a fatal ejection
Police told the Daily News that David Molina was riding on the back of a friend's Qipai Hunier dirt bike, traveling west on the Rockaway Beach Boardwalk just after 3 p.m., when the 25-year-old rider lost control near Beach 47th Street.
The rider hit a bench and a 55-year-old man who was rollerblading, according to the Daily News. Molina and the rider were thrown from the dirt bike; Molina hit his head and died on the boardwalk.
The crash happened on a boardwalk where motorized travel is barred
The city crash record places the crash on the Boardwalk at Beach 47th Street at 3:04 p.m. The later Daily News account also placed it near Beach 47th Street; an earlier Daily News story reported it near Beach 49th Street.
Both Daily News accounts said motorized transportation of any kind is prohibited on the boardwalk.
David Molina was remembered by his family
The Daily News identified the passenger as David Molina of Cedarhurst, Long Island, and reported that he died about four miles from home. His mother, Lily Molina, told the paper that he had said he was going to Brooklyn for a job interview.
The city record lists the fatal passenger as a 26-year-old man seated at the left rear of the motorcycle. The first Daily News story, published before he was named, described the passenger as a man in his 30s.
Investigators recorded driver inattention
The city crash record lists driver inattention/distraction as a contributing factor for the motorcycle rider. The record describes the motorcycle as going straight ahead, traveling west, with damage to the center front end.
Daily News reporting added that police said the rider lost control before the impact.
The rider left the scene
Police told the Daily News that the rider left the dirt bike and Molina on the boardwalk and fled on foot. The newspaper reported the next day that he had not been caught.
The injured rollerblader was taken to Jamaica Hospital. The Daily News first described his injuries as minor and later reported that he had a minor head wound.