Driver charged in fatal Queens hit-and-run that killed 16-year-old girl, injured 8-year-old sister
NEW YORK - A 29-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection to a fatal hit-and-run accident that left a 16-year-old girl dead and injured her 8-year-old sister last month, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Tuesday.
Boubacar Barry is facing several charges, including criminally negligent homicide, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, and assault with criminal negligence causing injury with a weapon.
"No parent should ever have to endure the loss of a child and our thoughts are with the family of these young sisters," Katz said. "It is imperative that pedestrians be able to cross our streets safely and it is incumbent upon every driver to make sure the crosswalk is clear before turning."
Police say that surveillance video shows that around 3:30 p.m. on June 26, Barry was driving a water delivery truck heading west on 47th Avenue in Sunnyside near Woodside Intermediate School.
As he made a left turn onto 46th Street, Barry allegedly failed to yield to a yellow school bus approaching from the eastbound lane of 47th Avenue and narrowly avoided hitting a bicyclist.
Police say he appeared to be looking at the rear driver’s side of his truck instead of ahead as he entered the intersection. At that moment, Jael Zhinin, 16, and her sister Leslie Zhinin, 8, were crossing 46th Street in the marked crosswalk with the walk signal.
The truck struck the sisters, throwing them to the pavement. Barry then drove over them and continued southbound without stopping.
Teen girl killed, 8-year-old injured when struck by vehicle near school in Queens: NYPD
A teenage girl was fatally struck by a water delivery truck across the street from a school in Sunnyside, Queens, on Wednesday afternoon, police said.
Subsequent video footage shows Barry making a left turn off 46th Street, double parking his truck, and speaking to someone before unloading water from his vehicle.
Jael Zhinin sustained severe head and torso trauma and was pronounced dead at the scene. Leslie Zhinin was taken to the hospital in serious condition and is receiving ongoing care.
If convicted, Barry faces up to seven years in prison. He is scheduled to return to court on September 19.