Two New York men who stole a dirt bike lost their lives when the brother of the rightful owner gave chase in his minivan and plowed them down on Thursday.
NBC reports that Suffolk County officers said that the two men allegedly stole the bike on Thursday at around 7 a.m. from a home in the Mastic Beach area of Suffolk County. The bike owner’s brother, Christopher Bouchard, got in his Odyssey minivan and drove around looking for the bike, when he saw two men riding it on North Bellport.
“The driver of the minivan spotted his bike and he attempted to obtain the dirt bike,” Suffolk Police Commissioner Timothy Sini said.
Christopher Bouchard pictures,crashed Keenen King and Anthony Garriques who on a stolen dirt bike https://t.co/Iv5SHWz0mg pic.twitter.com/Q1JcY2VM8Z
— infowe (@infowe) June 23, 2017
Bouchard gave chase but ended up colliding with the men on the bike, identified as Keenen King, 19, and Anthony Garriques, 20.
King was pronounced dead at the scene. Garriques was rushed to Stony Brook University Medical Center. His family confirmed on social media that he died while in the hospital. The crash occurred on Montauk Highway at around 10:15 a.m. According to witnesses, the van collided into the bike head-on.
2nd rider on dirt bike hit by minivan in Bellport has died. 20 year-old Anthony Garriques struggled to stay alive all day, sadly has passed. pic.twitter.com/9LYNjgHbSQ
— CeFaan Kim (@CeFaanKim) June 23, 2017
Authorities reported that Bouchard’s 31-year-old brother was in the passenger seat of the van when the crash occurred, but was not injured nor criminally charged. Bouchard, however, was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment in the first degree.
Commissioner Sini said that there is no evidence whatsoever that the ordeal was a hate crime. His comment came after outrage sparked because Bouchard, a white man, reportedly didn’t offer help to the suspects, two black men, after he crashed his van into them.
Keenen King picture,on a stolen dirt bike are killed https://t.co/SQzPZjf21B pic.twitter.com/9RF7Rxbpzb
— infowe (@infowe) June 23, 2017
Danielle Booker, Garriques’ aunt, told NBC that the Bouchard deserves punishment for what he did to the two men.
“Take two lives, for what? You can go get another bike, you can’t get another life.”
Bouchard is scheduled to be arraigned on Friday. Authorities didn’t specify whether they thought the crash was intentional or not.
[Feature Photo: Suffolk County Police Department/Facebook]
