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Read the press release here.

Driver Hit NYPD Officer During Stop for Talking on Cellphone, Police Say

By Nigel Chiwaya | April 21, 2014 9:52am
34th Precinct Assault on Officer
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NYPD

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — Police are looking for a driver who slammed into an NYPD officer who pulled him over for talking on his cellphone behind the wheel — and then fled the scene, police said.

Officers from the Manhattan North Scooter Task Force spotted a man in a dark green Honda Odyssey using a handheld phone while heading south on St. Nicholas Avenue near West 185th Street at 5 p.m, police said.

When police pulled up their scooters next to the minivan, the driver made a sudden left turn, knocking down one of the officers before speeding on West 185th Street, police said.

Surveillance video shows the driver careening onto a sidewalk near Yeshiva University, at Amsterdam Avenue and West 186th Street, and then speeding on the roadway, police said.

The officer was taken to St. Luke's-Roosevelt hospital with head, neck and back injuries, police said.

The minivan had a Florida license plate, sources said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477).