Ariel Russo (
)
The chaotic scene today where a little girl died after being struck by an SUV. (David Torres)
A toddler on her way to school was killed and her grandmother seriously injured on an Upper West Side sidewalk when a teenager fleeing the police plowed into them, law-enforcement sources said.
Cops initially pulled over Franklin Reyes, 17, on 86th and Amsterdam Avenue around 8:15 a.m. for driving recklessly, law-enforcement sources said.
When police approached the car on either side, Reyes allegedly took off — leading cops on a pursuit up to 97th Street, where he took a hard left going 35 mph — and plowed into 4-year-old Ariel Russo and her grandma, Katia Gutierrez, according to sources and witnesses.
“I heard the noise, I came into the street,” said Chris Prostko, a super who lives nearby. “They were lying on the sidewalk in front of the crushed window.”
Witnesses said the child was unconscious and covered in blood, with her grandmother fading in and out of consciousness.
EMS rushed the two to St. Luke’s Hospital, but the young girl could not be saved.
Her devastated family were at the hospital paying their respects.
“Last night I saw her dancing in a video and this morning I get a phone call that she’s dead,” said her grandfather. “I think she died instantly. She was dead when I got to the hospital.
“We have a lot of pain for this little girl. She was walking with her grandmother to school. Imagine — she died right here on the sidewalk.”
Reyes was taken into custody at the scene. Police initially said he had three prior arrests, including one for armed robbery, but later said he had only one – which did not include the hold-up.
The area was crowded with parents and children this morning, who were disturbed by the scene.
“I cross this street everyday,” said Sherry Shermon, who was there with her 5-year-old boy. “I hold my children’s hands because this is a dangerous intersection.”
Additional reporting by Yasmine Phillips