NYPD investigating possible police chase involving illegal ATV after 2 men killed
NEW YORK -- Two NYPD officers have been placed on modified duty while officials investigate whether their actions played a role in the deadly crash of an illegal ATV.
It crashed into a tractor trailer in Queens, killing the driver and a passenger.
CBS2's Natalie Duddridge spoke to their families on Sunday.
Nelly and Ricardo Lopez are beside themselves. Their 20-year-old son, Angel Lopez, and his best friend, who family identified as 18-year-old Jeremy Ramos, were killed when the ATV they were riding on crashed Friday morning.
Simultaneous memorials were held outside the men's homes.
"Very loved. [It] left us all traumatized," friend Adonis Suero said.
Police said Lopez was driving the ATV in the wrong direction near Jackson Avenue and Queens Plaza South in Long Island City when it hit a tractor trailer. The men were not wearing helmets and suffered severe head trauma.
Family members said a friend was riding beside them and he says police were pursuing them.
"They was chasing them. One hundred percent we sure they were chasing them," brother Ricardo Lopez said.
READ MORE: NYPD: Hundreds of illegal ATVs, dirt bikes seized since crackdown began
The NYPD confirmed to CBS2 that two police officers were moved to modified desk duty while authorities investigate if they indeed were chasing the ATV.
The move outraged Patrick Lynch, the president of the Police Benevolent Association, who said in a statement, "These police officers and cops across the city have been told to prioritize getting illegal bikes and ATVs off the streets, because the community is sick of them. They should not be punished for doing the job they were sent out to do."
ATVs and dirt bikes are illegal on New York City roads and sidewalks. Those caught riding face fines or arrest and have their vehicle seized.
READ MORE: NYPD shows off dozens of confiscated illegal dirt bikes, ATVs
Under the NYPD patrol guide, pursuits of vehicles are allowed as long as officers follow specific protocols.
The policy "requires that a vehicle pursuit be terminated whenever the risks to uniformed members of the service and the public outweigh the danger to the community if suspect is not immediately apprehended."
"Police have to enforce the law and that's a tight rope police have to walk, between protecting the public by not escalating a bad situation," attorney Andrew Lieb said.
Angel Lopez's family acknowledged he was riding illegally, but said the young men didn't deserve to die.
"You could give them a warning, put your lights on, let them go two blocks, let them go. You'll catch them another time around," Ricardo Lopez said.
As of July, the NYPD has seized more than 3,000 of these illegal vehicles.