Moped Driver Struck by Multiple Vehicles, Dragged in Fatal Cycle Crash

Moped Driver Killed in Cross Bronx Crash  

The NYPD said a moped rider was killed when he was struck by three vehicles on the Cross Bronx Expressway. Two of the drivers fled the scene of the accident. -File Photo

By Dan Gesslein 

Bronx Voice 

December 5, 2023 

BRONX - A moped driver was killed when he was struck by three separate vehicles and then dragged on the Cross Bronx Expressway, the NYPD said. Two of the drivers did not stay at the scene.  

Police responding to a call of an accident found the moped driver unresponsive with severe body trauma at the Cross Bronx Expressway near Jerome Avenue. 

The NYPD has identified the victim as Joseph Anthony Ruiz of 214th Street. 

NYPD's Collision Investigation Squad determined the cause of the accident. At around 9 am on December 4, Joseph Anthony Ruiz, 18, was driving a Jiangsu moped eastbound on the Cross Bronx Expressway. 

Investigators said Ruiz was traveling in the right and center lanes when he struck the rear left corner of a Honda minivan in the right lane. He then struck the right side of a tractor trailer traveling in the center lane. The impact threw Ruiz off the moped and onto the pavement and under the rear wheels of the tractor trailer. 

Cops said Ruiz was then struck by a Dodge Charger and dragged for a distance by the muscle car. 

The driver of the minivan remained at the scene where as the tractor trailer and Dodge drivers took off.

Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/ or on Twitter @NYPDTips. 

All calls are strictly confidential.