Carnage

Cops Finally Arrest Driver Who Killed Delivery Worker in Brooklyn Last Year

Police have finally charged the hit-and-run driver they say ran over and killed a delivery cyclist in Brooklyn last year.

By Gersh Kuntzman

8:20 PM EST on February 24, 2019

Cops Finally Arrest Driver Who Killed Delivery Worker in Brooklyn Last Year

Victim MD Rajon in a photo obtained by Channel 7 News.

Police have finally charged the hit-and-run driver they say ran killed a delivery cyclist in Brooklyn last year.

Late last week, cops said they had arrested Jonathan Cuesta, 32, of Clifton, N.J., and charged him with failure to yield to bicyclist MD Rajon and failure to exercise due care in the operation of his truck, which struck and killed Rajon in the early morning of Dec. 14 on Pitkin Avenue in East New York.

The charges carry a maximum punishment of mere days in prison.

@NYPDHighway Collision Investigation Sqd just arrested the driver that failed to exercise due care on 12/14/18 @ Pitkin Ave & Atkins Ave @NYPD75Pct wherein the driver struck and killed an E-Bike operator who had the right of way in a marked bike lane. Charged w/fail to yield. pic.twitter.com/h4gKZpxjHE
— NYPD Highway (@NYPDHighway) February 21, 2019

It is unclear what took the NYPD so long in making its case. Cuesta was actually arrested the day after the crash, though police did not release his name because he was not charged at the time.

Rajon, 21, had been in the United States from his native Bangladesh only one month when he was killed making a food delivery. His death was classified by the NYPD as a motor vehicle fatality, not a bicycle fatality because he was riding an electric bike.

Gersh Kuntzman

Tabloid legend Gersh Kuntzman has been with New York newspapers since 1989, including stints at the New York Daily News, the Post, the Brooklyn Paper and even a cup of coffee with the Times. He's also the writer and producer of "Murder at the Food Coop," which was a hit at the NYC Fringe Festival in 2016, and “SUV: The Musical” in 2007. He also writes the Cycle of Rage column, which is archived here.

Carnage | NYPD

Comments Are Temporarily Disabled

Streetsblog is in the process of migrating our commenting system. During this transition, commenting is temporarily unavailable.

Once the migration is complete, you will be able to log back in and will have full access to your comment history. We appreciate your patience and look forward to having you back in the conversation soon.