MTA officer allegedly strikes pedestrian and abandons him in Staten Island

June 15, 2017 By Paul Frangipane Special to the Brooklyn Daily Eagle

An MTA Bridges and Tunnels officer faces up to four years after he struck a pedestrian in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and eventually stranded him along the side of a Staten Island street. Eagle file photo by Rob Abruzzese

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An on-duty MTA Bridges and Tunnels officer was indicted Thursday for allegedly striking a pedestrian with his car in Bay Ridge, taking him to Staten Island and leaving him on a sidewalk, officials said.

A 41-year-old man was crossing near the corner of 92nd Street and Gatling Place on May 26, 2016, when MTA officer Lawrence Ffrench allegedly struck him in a marked MTA vehicle. The victim was reportedly thrown through the air and landed on the ground, suffering noticeable injuries, before Ffrench picked him up and placed him in the rear of his vehicle.

Ffrench, 42, allegedly drove the victim over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge toward Staten Island and brought him to a small access road near Tompkins Avenue and Wadsworth Avenue to leave on the side of the road.

Although Ffrench urged the victim not to speak of the event, the man called 911 once Ffrench left and told the operator he was struck by an MTA police car and abandoned in Staten Island, according to a statement.

“That an on-duty officer would strike a pedestrian and leave the scene is shocking; that he would move the victim and ask him not to report the officer is even more egregious,” Acting Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said.

Ffrench was charged with a felony of leaving the scene of an incident without reporting and third-degree intimidating a witness. He was arraigned before Judge Danny Chun at Brooklyn Supreme Court.

The victim was taken to Staten Island University Hospital and kept there for four days and underwent knee surgery.

Ffrench was released without bail and could face up to four years in prison if convicted.

His next date to appear in court is set for Aug. 23.