Hit-and-run driver killed Bronx pedestrian in Wakefield crosswalk
A hit-and-run driver in a 2016 Chevy Silverado hit and killed 64-year-old SM Akhtaruzzaman at Bronxwood Avenue and East 229th Street, where city records say he was crossing with the signal and police said the driver left the scene.
What We Know
SM Akhtaruzzaman, 64, was crossing Bronxwood Avenue at East 229th Street in the Wakefield section of the Bronx around midday on Sept. 23, 2024. City crash records place him at the intersection and say he was crossing with the signal when a northbound driver making a left turn in a flatbed hit him. Police accounts reported by Norwood News and the Daily News identified the driver’s vehicle as a 2016 Chevy Silverado with towing equipment, said the driver had a green light while turning, and said the driver did not remain at the scene. Medics took Akhtaruzzaman to Jacobi Medical Center, where he died, the Daily News reported.
The crossing had the signal, police said
The crash happened at about 12:37 p.m. on Sept. 23, 2024, at Bronxwood Avenue and East 229th Street. City records identify the person killed as a 64-year-old male pedestrian who was crossing with the signal at the intersection.
Police told Norwood News that SM Akhtaruzzaman was crossing Bronxwood Avenue in the marked crosswalk from the northeast corner to the northwest corner of East 229th Street when a driver in a 2016 Chevy Silverado made a left turn onto northbound Bronxwood Avenue and hit him.
Records and press accounts describe a towing vehicle
City records categorize the involved 2016 Chevrolet truck as a flatbed and list the driver as traveling north while making a left turn. Police accounts reported by Norwood News and the Daily News described the driver’s vehicle as a 2016 Chevy Silverado with towing equipment; Norwood called it a pickup tow truck, while the Daily News described a tow hitch.
Investigators listed failure to yield
The city vehicle record lists failure to yield right of way as a contributing factor for the driver. Norwood News and the Daily News reported that police said Akhtaruzzaman had the walk signal, while the driver also had a green light for the turn.
SM Akhtaruzzaman lived near the crash site
The Daily News reported that Akhtaruzzaman was crossing just down the block from his Wakefield home. His daughter, Israd Maria, told ABC7 that he was kind, respectful and loved his family, adding that he would feed stray cats.
The driver left, and police sought information
Norwood News reported that responding officers found Akhtaruzzaman unconscious and unresponsive with trauma to his head and body. The Daily News reported that medics took him to Jacobi Medical Center, where he could not be saved.
The Daily News reported that surveillance video obtained by ABC7 showed the driver appearing to slow down and then speed away through the next red light. A witness told ABC7 he followed the driver, got a plate number for police and then lost sight of the driver.
Police said the driver did not remain at the scene. As of the Daily News report published Sept. 26, 2024, no arrests had been made and the investigation was continuing.
East 229th Street has seen repeated crashes
The crash happened at Bronxwood Avenue and East 229th Street in the Bronx’s Wakefield area.
Along East 229th Street in the Bronx, CrashCountNYC’s Crash Finder counted 117 crashes, 73 injuries, four serious injuries and one death from Jan. 1, 2022, to June 1, 2026.