Police: 22-year-old man beaten multiple times, killed on Major Deegan Expressway

NEW YORK — Police are investigating a fatal accident on the Major Deegan Expressway on Sunday.

They’re trying to figure out the exact chain of events that started with a single-vehicle crash on the southbound lanes and ended with a pedestrian being hit and killed on the northbound lanes.

It started with a disabled car and the driver of that car was hit not once but twice on the roadway.

Police closed the southbound Deegan between exits 10 and 11 at around 4:15 a.m. Investigators initially said a 22-year-old man, later identified as Justin Francisco, lost control of his Honda Accord and crashed into a wall. He then decided to leave his car and inspect the damage near 238th Street in Kingsbridge.

While doing so, police said a 61-year-old driver in a Subaru, also traveling southbound, hit the Honda and pushed it forward, adding that the car hit the man who was inspecting the damage.

In a tragic event, that 22-year-old was thrown over the center wall of the Deegan into oncoming northbound traffic.

At that point, investigators say the 22-year-old was hit again, this time by a 37-year-old driver of a jeep heading north. The impact ejected the driver from the Jeep.

When the ambulance arrived, paramedics were unable to save the 22-year-old.

The Deegan was closed for hours while the New York State Police Collision Reconstruction Unit gathered evidence.

In addition to one death, police say the driver of the jeep was taken to hospital in critical condition. Three others were also transported, but are expected to be okay.