Hit-and-Run Teen Car Thief Injures L.I. Detective With Vehicle in Queens
Jorge Alvarez was behind the wheel of a stolen 2018 BMW sedan at this gas station Tuesday when he hit the gas as Nassau cop approached him, said authorities. The officer suffered severe leg injuries.(Sam Costanza/for New York Daily News)
(IBEXNews) - A Queens teen in a stolen car faces prison time for running over a police officer investigating the theft and then speeding off, officials said Friday.
Jorge Alvarez, 18, of Corona, was behind the wheel of a 2018 BMW sedan just before midnight Tuesday when cops approached the vehicle in a gas station in Rego Park. The car had been reported stolen two days earlier from Nassau County.
One of the cops, a Nassau County detective, was trying to enter the vehicle on the passenger side when the driver accelerated. The car slammed into another vehicle, with the detective between both cars.
A Nassau County detective was trying to enter the vehicle, pictured, when the driver accelerated, and the car slammed into another vehicle with the detective between both cars. (Sam Costanza/for New York Daily News)
Alvarez was apprehended a short time later. The detective suffered severe injuries to his leg, including a fracture.
“Our police face danger every single day on the job,” said Queens DA Melinda Katz. “The defendant was attempting to evade arrest. But after fleeing the scene, he was quickly apprehended and now faces very serious charges.”
Detectives said Alvarez was part of a Long Island car theft ring.
Alvarez was arraigned Thursday and charged with assault, assault on a police officer, criminal possession of stolen property and unauthorized use of a vehicle.
He was being held on $10,000 cash bail. Alvarez faces up to 25 years in prison.if convicted.
A passenger in the vehicle is still being sought, cops said.
