Videos posted to social media show the moments when a person plowed through a Manhattan restaurant in a black Cadillac and nearly hit pedestrians while fleeing a traffic stop.
In the clips posted to social media, a driver can be seen nearly backing into an NYPD officer who jumps out of the way before speeding off in the opposite direction.
The incident happened around 5 p.m. Wednesday when the driver of a black Cadillac Sedan was pulled over on East 30th Street between Madison and Park Avenues.
A video posted by CBS New York’s Alecia Reid documented the entire situation, including when the driver knocked over a sign on the sidewalk and nearly hit several people in the street.
Police are currently looking for the driver who fled on foot after colliding with another vehicle nearby.
One officer was punched, the NYPD told DailyMail.com, and he was taken to the hospital with head injuries.
Videos posted to social media show the moments when a person plowed through a Manhattan restaurant in a black Cadillac and nearly hit pedestrians while fleeing a traffic stop
Videos posted to social media show the moments when a person plowed through a Manhattan restaurant in a black Cadillac and nearly hit pedestrians while fleeing a traffic stop.
Police are currently searching for the driver who fled on foot after colliding with another vehicle nearby
In the video posted by Reid, a police officer is seen to the side of the vehicle as it begins to flee and drive away from several cruisers.
The unknown driver then crashes directly into the outdoor dining area of a restaurant below where the person filming is located, nearly hitting one person.
That car continues down the sidewalk, plowing through the dining area and sending the restaurant grounds flying through the air.
The Cadillac then backs onto the street before veering onto the opposite sidewalk, nearly hitting a parking meter and crashing directly into a street sign.
The sign is pulled completely out of the ground and bounces backwards as frightened bystanders run across the nearby crosswalk to avoid being hit.
When crossing the intersection, the driver drives over the fallen sign, causing the vehicle to briefly stop in the middle of the busy street.
The driver then departs from the crime scene as the video ends with the person filming panning back to police officers calling for help.
Reid’s video has been viewed just under 10,000 times and has been retweeted and tweeted by dozens of accounts expressing disbelief and anger.
In the video posted by Reid, a police officer is seen to the side of the vehicle as it begins to flee and drive away from several cruisers.
When crossing the intersection, the driver drives over the fallen sign, causing the vehicle to briefly stop in the middle of the busy street
The Cadillac then backs onto the street before veering onto the opposite sidewalk, nearly hitting a parking meter and crashing directly into a street sign
A heavy police presence was on the scene on East 30th Street Wednesday night
A water tap was knocked over on Wednesday evening by the driver of the black Cadillac
The injured officer has been taken to Bellevue Hospital and is being treated for a head injury, according to a NYPD spokesman
The driver managed to escape, but later collided with another car
The driver remained free on Wednesday evening after the car was found
Another video taken from behind showed officers trying to break into the vehicle from all angles as the car was stuck in a narrow alley.
However, the driver repeatedly reverses and drives forward, hitting several parked vehicles in the process.
“Let the n**a go!” the man who is recording yells at the police, explaining that the driver is going to hurt someone if he continues to quickly try to escape from officers.
Another person can be heard repeatedly shouting “shoot him” as the car drives away.
The driver nearly hits two people in the video at one point, sending them both flying back, with the man appearing to hit his head.
The video ends with a very loud crash sound in the distance.
According to an NYPD spokesman, the injured officer was taken to Bellevue Hospital and is being treated for a head injury.
The driver managed to escape, but later collided with another car.
The Cadillac was found abandoned shortly after the initial incident.
The driver remained at large Wednesday evening.