Woman fatally struck while crossing street in Bensonhurst, hit-and-run driver arrested
BENSONHURST, Brooklyn (WABC) -- A woman was killed by a hit-and-run driver in Brooklyn Wednesday evening.
Officials say the 60-year-old victim Elizabeth Perez was crossing the street with her dog in Bensonhurst at 63rd Street and Dahill Road near her home at around 10:30 p.m.
The driver, identified as 24-year-old Yerlin Garcia, struck the woman and tried to flee, but was arrested about an hour later not far from the scene.
He was hit with a slew of charges. Police say he was driving the 2005 Acura without a license, registration or insurance and left the scene.
Police say Perez was not in a crosswalk.
Eyewitnesses say Perez's pocketbook and belongings were scattered all over the street.
"Her phone was ringing. It was a woman calling her," eyewitness Katherine McGrath said. "Not sure if it was a family member. Maybe they were looking for her to come home."
Perez never made it there. Authorities say she was rushed to Maimonides Hospital, where she later died.
Co-workers remembered the Perez as someone who put a smile on everyone's face at Dollar General on Utica Avenue.
Those smiles disappeared the moment Perez was killed.
"The last word she ever said to me was 'see you next weekend' and I'm not gonna," Perez's coworker Venus Baker said. "Because I close on Sunday, and I was going to close with her."
The rallying cry from residents in Brooklyn is one you've heard before, "stop the reckless driving."
They say if this driver had been more responsible, Perez would still be here with lots more life to live.
"She loved her daughter, she loved us, but when she got here she always made sure to let her daughter know she was here," coworker Erica D. said.
Perez was a mother at heart to more than just her kin.
"She would also help me with my mental issues," Baker said. "I was battling depression heavy and she gave me a lot of advice."
An invaluable, priceless loss at Dollar General.
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