Unlicensed Driver Arrested In Hit-And-Run That Killed 78-Year-Old

YONKERS, NY — Police have identified the victim in this weekend's fatal hit-and-run crash involving a 78-year-old pedestrian.

On Friday, around 9:30 a.m., Yonkers police responded to Executive Boulevard and Nepperhan Avenue after a report of a motor vehicle accident involving an injured pedestrian.

First responders found an unconscious elderly man down on the road with serious blunt force trauma to his body. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he died.

The vehicle believed to be involved in the fatal collision fled the area before police arrived.

Detectives and investigators from the Major Case Squad, the Crime Scene Unit and the Traffic Unit responded to the scene and interviewed witnesses, processed forensic evidence and reconstructed accident dynamics, according to police. Investigators believe that the victim was crossing Executive Boulevard north to south at Truman Avenue when he was hit by a red Jeep Grand Cherokee with Florida license plates traveling east on Executive Boulevard.

The Jeep then fled the area. Several commuters witnessed the accident.

Just a few minutes later, the AWARE Crime Control Center identified the suspect vehicle and Major Case detectives attempted to locate the driver. Within the next 28 hours, detectives found the red Jeep, which was determined to be a rental car. Authorities said they were also able to identify the driver at the time of the fatal crash.

24-year-old Joseph Dimitri Delgado, of Yonkers, was located in a hotel in Elmsford and was placed into custody Saturday afternoon. He was charged with one felony count of operator leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death.

Delgado is unlicensed and his driving privileges had previously been suspended in New York, according to police. He is currently being held in the Yonkers City Jail awaiting arraignment on Monday.

The victim was identified as 78-year-old Azhar Jamil Said, of Yonkers. The City of Yonkers and the Yonkers Police Department offered their sincere condolences to his family and friends.