Caught on video: Suspects rob man after he was hit by car in the Bronx
NEW YORK -- Police are searching for a driver who crashed into a pedestrian, who then got robbed as he lay injured on the ground in the Bronx.
The man, 39, was struck minutes before he was to open a store in the Morrisania section, CBS2's Thalia Perez reported Sunday.
The man was just getting onto the sidewalk when a car slammed into him at East 169th Street and Intervale Avenue.
"You're coming out here and you don't know what you're going to come across, and it's close to home which is even scarier," said neighbor Nanette Santiago.
After the man was struck, police said, someone from the car, either the driver or a passenger, ran over to him, grabbed his belongings and fled.
A short time later, someone ran back to the man - still motionless - and went through his pockets. At one point, they even turned him over.
"It's really sad. Those are not humans. I believe those are animals," said Khaled Alawdi, who works at a deli with the victim.
Alawdi said the victim, who has not been identified, was supposed to open the store Saturday morning at 7.
"I was shocked. First thing I did was call my father," Alawdi said.
Police released pictures of the suspects and the car they were in.
"It's crazy that you could be walking down the street, getting hit by a car and they'll rob you after you got hit by a car, instead of asking you if you need them to call 911," said Gabriel Olivero, a neighbor.
Santiago said she is concerned for her safety.
"That could've been, God forbid, my son crossing the street or me crossing the street," she said.
Police said the victim suffered multiple injuries and was rushed to Lincoln Hospital in critical condition. It was not immediately clear what was stolen or if he was targeted.
Anyone with any information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or via DM on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.
