An elderly woman was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver with a suspended license in Queens on Thursday – the 20th pedestrian fatality of 2014.
Kaneez Hussein, 73, who investigators believe suffers from dementia, was walking in the middle of Jamaica Avenue when a gray 2004 Nissan Altima hit her and took off about 6:30 a.m.
Medics rushed her to Jamaica Hospital in critical condition, and she had head trauma, as well as a broken leg. She died three hours later.
Video surveillance caught her leaving her nearby home on 129th Street in a nightgown and sneakers, and investigators are looking at whether she fell on Jamaica Avenue or threw herself in front of the car.
Driver Bladimer Alvarez Sorto, 27, was collared and charged with leaving the scene of an accident, as well as being an unlicensed operator.
Originally from Guyana, Hussein was a grandmother who lived with her son Shameer.
“You can see the sadness in his face,” said Kamnul Khan, 62, a member of the clergy at the family’s mosque. “She was a good person and a very religious woman. This is sad.”
Last year, 17 elderly pedestrians were hit and killed in Queens, according to an internal DOT report obtained by the Post. 63 were killed citywide, out of a total 289 deaths.
Mayor De Blasio rolled out a 63-part plan Tuesday called “Vision Zero,” which strives to bring pedestrian deaths down to zero.
It includes the city advocating for Albany legislators to steepen penalties for drivers with revoked and suspended licenses that kill or severely injure people, as well as those that flee the scene of a crash.
The crimes would be elevated from misdemeanors to felonies, and drivers could face four years in prison.