A tragedy unfolded in Elmhurst, Queens this past Saturday, leading to a Long Island man facing life in prison after the murder of a teenage girl and injury of her mother in what authorities describe as a deliberate hit-and-run. Edwin Cruz Gomez, 38, from Uniondale, was indicted for allegedly using his vehicle as a weapon during the early hours, around 4 a.m., following a confrontation outside the Prima Donna restaurant on Roosevelt Avenue, as reported by Gothamist.
The encounter turned deadly when 16-year-old Jhoanny Alvarez and her mother, walking past the restaurant, caught the attention of Cruz Gomez who started to harass them this led to a physical altercation between Cruz Gomez and Alvarez's stepfather and boyfriend—bystanders had to separate the brawl. After the incident, the group walked away across the street where Cruz Gomez, according to ABC7NY, then got into his Chevrolet Suburban, drove onto the sidewalk, and struck the teenager and her mother resulting in Alvarez's death and her mother's leg injuries.
In a statement obtained by Gothamist, Cruz Gomez fled the scene after the collision but later approached NYPD officers, claiming he had been assaulted, and led them back to the scene. Tests revealed his blood-alcohol content to be .137%, which is significantly above the legal limit of .08%. The Queen's district attorney's office laid charges including murder, attempted murder, assault, and vehicular manslaughter.
The local community has been left in shock by the senselessness of the act, Geovanni Quintero, a local resident, recounted to ABC7NY, "I just heard the impact, it sounded like a big crush. Like something hit something and a big noise. And then I came out of the building, I looked and I saw the accident." Meanwhile, Cruz Gomez, who was arraigned Sunday night and is currently held without bail, may serve a sentence ranging from 25 years to life in prison if convicted, he is set to reappear in court this Friday and his attorney has yet to make a statement regarding the charges.
