A beloved 69-year-old New York City educator died days after being hit by an e-bike rider — and cops inexplicably let the suspect go.
Now that the family is demanding answers, police are asking the public to help find the man.
Priscilla Loke, deputy director of Chinatown Head Start, was on her way to work when a cyclist hit her earlier this month. Three days after being hit, Loki died in hospital.
However, immediately after the accident, the suspect spoke to police before they allowed him to leave on his Citibike electric bike.
The NYPD recently released surveillance footage of the hit-and-run suspect and asked for help identifying him.
Priscilla Loke, deputy director of Chinatown Head Start, was on her way to work when a cyclist hit her earlier this month.
Grainy surveillance video shows the man heading north on Chrystie Street and striking Loke who was crossing the intersection of Grand Street around 10:27 a.m.
The video shows the man heading north on Chrystie Street and striking Loke who was crossing the intersection of Grand Street around 10:27 a.m. The suspect tried to prop her against a plastic barrier after the collision.
The suspect is then seen in the video walking towards an NYPD vehicle across the street and speaking to officers.
He then walked away and, as the police approached, the suspect got back on his electric bike and left the scene. He passed by a police officer who did not appear to arrest him in the video.
Loke was sent to Bellevue Hospital and died three days later.
Loke’s family wants to know why police let the suspect go without even knowing his name.
“Does this person know that they hit someone and that person is dead now? » Liz Ouyang, Loke’s longtime friend, asked.
Ouyang organized a group called the Priscilla Support Committee, made up of Loke’s family and supporters.
The group is demanding a meeting with top NYPD officials, including Commissioner Edward Caban, the police report and videos from NYPD surveillance cameras at the crash site.
Loke had no children, she was like a grandmother and mother to generations of families in the Head Start preschool program, Loke’s family told PIX11 News.
Weng Wai Ho, Loke’s nephew, said: “If only the cyclist had been more responsible, this wouldn’t have happened. »
Police failed to handle Loke’s case, according to the family.
The suspect was seen speaking to police after the crash.
However, NYPD officers did not arrest him and allowed him to get back on his bike and leave the area.
Now, as Loke’s family demands answers, police are asking the public for help in finding the man.
The suspect is described as black, with short hair and a slim build, wearing blue jeans and a white t-shirt and was carrying a light blue shoulder bag.
The Collision Investigation Squad only closed the intersection an hour after the crash to collect evidence, the family said.
The family also asks to see Citibike records.
The suspect is described as black, with short hair and a slim build, wearing blue jeans and a white t-shirt and carrying a light blue shoulder bag.
The NYPD has been contacted for comment.
Loke is not the first victim of electric bikes in the Big Apple.
Brian Boyd, 25, fled the scene after punching Gone Girl actress Lisa Banes on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. He rushed to get his bike repaired, leaving the wild star bleeding on the ground.
He was charged with manslaughter last year and faces one to three years in prison.
At least 119 people died while riding electric scooters or e-bikes between 2017 and 2021, according to a study by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board.
In other cases, lithium-ion batteries found in e-bikes, e-scooters, and e-vehicles are blowing up houses.
In June, the garage of a house in Bass Hill, in Sydney’s southwest, caught fire after a man accidentally charged the faulty battery on his electric bike, which he had bought from a friend.
The same day in Orange, in central-west New South Wales, another fire broke out in a garage after a lithium battery a man was using to charge his drone exploded.