2 NYPD officers suspended for allegedly leaving the scene of fiery car crash in Inwood
INWOOD, Manhattan (WABC) -- Two NYPD officers have been suspended after they allegedly left the scene of a fiery crash in Manhattan before the driver died.
The officers, both assigned to the 50th Precinct, are accused of failing to report the crash of a Honda CRV on Dyckman Street just before 5 a.m. on Wednesday.
Sources tell Eyewitness News that the officers had followed the vehicle, which was reported stolen, southbound on the Henry Hudson Parkway from the Bronx into Upper Manhattan.
When the driver exited the Henry Hudson Parkway and crashed, the officers are believed to have turned around and returned to their Bronx precinct without reporting what happened.
An unidentified body was later discovered in the vehicle's charred remains.
"The most troubling thing here is it's not rendering aid to a vehicle that gets into a crash like that," said retired NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce. "The ethics thing here... is it's actually a moral failure. You have to stop no matter what happens."
The NYPD released the following statement in response to the suspensions: "That incident is currently under review by our Force Investigation Division and the Attorney General's office. The two officers who were involved in that incident have been suspended pending review of the incident."
The Police Benevolent Association says officers were on patrol addressing chronic crime conditions and are asking people not to rush to judgment.
"These police officers were on patrol, attempting to address chronic crime conditions in their precinct," PBA President Patrick Hendry said. "This incident is under investigation, and that investigation must be completed without any rush to judgement."
Meanwhile, the NYPD's Force Investigation Division is recovering nearby surveillance camera to help in their investigation into the officers' actions.
The state Attorney Generals Office of Special Investigation is conducting a preliminary assessment of the matter.
The city's medical examiner will conduct an autopsy to determine the driver's cause of death.
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