Vigil held for 21-year-old cyclist Christian Castelan, killed in hit-and-run in Bronx over July 4 weekend
NEW YORK -- A vigil was held Thursday night for a cyclist killed in a hit-and-run over the holiday weekend.
The crash happened in the Bronx, where there has been a spike in traffic fatalities. Thirty people have died in crashes in the borough this year alone, according to the group Transportation Alternatives. That's up 25 percent from the same time last year.
CBS2's Nick Caloway spoke to the victim's family, and has more on their plea for justice.
They are burdened with grief, but were lifted up with prayer. Relatives and loved ones gathered at a small memorial for Christian Castelan, who had just turned 21 in May.
"He does have a family. His mother is very upset. It's heartbreaking for the whole family to go through this because the extent of the accident is just ... it's unbearable," said Elizabeth Carino, the victim's aunt.
Carino said Castelan was born in New York before moving to Mexico with his family as a small boy. When he turned 18, he moved back to the Bronx to work as a food delivery driver.
"He was the sole supporter of his mom, with his four siblings in Mexico," Carino said.
Castelan was riding his bike on East 172nd Street at around 3 p.m. on Sunday, when police say he was hit by a white Jeep Grand Cherokee at the corner of Metcalf Avenue. He was pronounced dead at Jacobi Hospital.
According to Transportation Alternatives, he was the second cyclist killed on Bronx streets so far this year.
Roberto Martinez, with the NYC Food Delivery Movement, said the Bronx is one of the most dangerous boroughs in which to work.
"People order food and someone's got to deliver it, and this is a tough job," Martinez said.
As for the driver who ran over Castelan and took off, his family wants just one thing.
"Justice. The family wants justice, and the family wants her to, you know, be accountable," aunt Ivelisse Rosario-Balbuena said.
So far, no arrests have been made.
Police say the white Jeep the suspect was driving was stolen.
