Search continues for pickup truck driver who killed 5-year-old Jonathan Martinez in Queens hit-and-run
NEW YORK -- A Queens family is in mourning Friday as police continue to search for the hit-and-run driver who struck and killed a 5-year-old boy.
CBS2's Alice Gainer obtained surveillance video of the pickup truck police are looking for after the crash in East Elmhurst.
Security camera footage from around 5:30 p.m. Thursday showed Jonathan Martinez, his two siblings and their father in the road attempting to cross while walking home from a park.
A white Dodge Ram traveling on McIntosh Street turned southbound on 100th Street and struck Jonathan. The driver kept going.
Jonathan was taken to the hospital, but died.
Tanya Martinez, his cousin, lives with the family and said she went over to the scene after Jonathan's mother received the call.
"The heart is broken," Martinez said.
Martinez said her cousin was always smiling.
"When he wake up, 'Good morning Tanya, I love you.' He's very special," she said.
Ricardo Martinez, Jonathan's grandfather, was in tears Friday near the accident scene. In Spanish, he said he hopes God blesses the driver and that he turns himself in, it's very painful and his daughter-in-law is destroyed.
The street was resurfaced last week. There were no markings in the road Friday. Some upset residents said they had concerns for a while and want more safety measures in place.
Hiram Monserrate, a former elected leader, wrote a letter to the Department of Transportation commissioner.
"Full 4-way stop, speed bumps on 100th Street and McIntosh, and for them to really put a pedestrian mall here. A triangle so that when they're making that left turn, it's not blind," said Monserrate.
Instead of enjoying a fun time at the park and preparing for the new school year, Jonathan's family is getting ready to say goodbye.
