A 38-year-old Chevrolet Suburban driver hopped a Queens sidewalk and mowed down a 16-year-old girl he was arguing with early Saturday during a horrific road rage clash, police said.
The driver was sitting behind the wheel of his idling Suburban near the corner of Roosevelt Ave. and Benham St., underneath the elevated No. 7 line in Jackson Heights, as his victim and two others walked by at around 4:15 a.m., according to authorities.
The teenage girl began arguing with the driver, who gunned his engine, jumped the curb and deliberately slammed into her, horrified witnesses told police.
The driver then backed away from the sidewalk, sped south on Benham St., heading the wrong way on the one-way street, and struck a parked car.
The driver abandoned the Suburban and ran off on foot, only to be arrested by police officers who arrived at the scene.
The teen, whose name was not immediately disclosed, died at the scene.
Charges against the Suburban driver were pending on Saturday. Authorities did not say what the two had been arguing about.
Over the last several months, the city has done a massive multi-agency crackdown on that section of Roosevelt Ave. to curb prostitution, unlicensed vendors and other quality of life offenses.
The initiative, dubbed “Operation Restore Roosevelt,” began late last year and has been credited for bringing down crime in the area by 28% as of June.
Area residents, however, believe more work needs to be done. Late last month, a group rallied to call on the federal government step in and help tamp down crime in the area.
