Aug 14, 2009 6:10 am US/Eastern
Boy Dies After Being Hit By Cab In Harlem
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Police tape off the area where a young boy was struck by a cab driver in the crosswalk on August 13, 2009.
CBS
An East Harlem grade school boy was killed Thursday after being hit by a taxicab.
At around 3 p.m. 8-year-old Axel Pablo darted into traffic on East 112th Street. Witnesses said he was walking behind his mother and 2-year-old sister and had a piece of pizza in his hand when he ran into the street from between two parked cars.
The yellow cab was making a left turn and some witnesses said the driver was speeding.
"The cabbie is going 40, like so fast, and he hit the kid and he was flying," said Jafrul Hossain of East Harlem.
The unidentified 44-year-old cab driver told police the boy seemed to come out of nowhere.
Police have officially classified the case an accident, with no criminality. Investigators checked phone records and said there is no proof the cab driver was talking on a cell phone as some witnesses claimed.
Another reason he was not charged is because he remained at the scene. But deli owner Salha Nagi said that is only because a crowd gathered and would not let him leave.
"He tried to bounce and I stopped him," Nagi said, adding, "He was going 50 miles per hour and turning left and he wasn't watching the kid. He hit the kid hard and the kid wasn't breathing."
Pablo was pronounced dead at Metropolitan Hospital Center 40 minutes after he was struck.
Neighbors said the boy was friendly and polite and always doted on his baby sister.
"He was a beautiful child. I see him like a little angel," said family friend Amelia Diaz.
Now there is a memorial of flowers and candles on the sidewalk on East 112th Street. It is something somber for people to slow down and look at. It is also a reminder for people to slow down all the time, on all streets and keep kids safe.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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