Christopher Cruz, 28, has been arrested in relation to the hideous attack on a Range Rover driver on the Westside Highway in Manhattan, reports CBS New York.
Here’s what you need to know about him:
1. He is to be Charged With a String of Offenses
Cruz is charged with reckless endangerment, reckless driving, endangering the welfare of a child and menacing. The incident occurred on September 29 on the Westside Highway and has been spun out-of-control online thanks to a viral video that was leaked of the incident.
(Live Leak)
2. He Too Was Treated in Hospital
Cruz lives in Passaic, New Jersey. He was hospitalized after the incident with minor back pain but released soon after. The New York Times said that erroneous early reporting had said that Cruz had suffered two broken legs in the incident, which was later corrected.
3. He Did Not Take Part in the Most Harrowing Part of the Video
Cruz was not part of the group that pursued Range Rover driver, Alexian Lien, up into Washington Heights, on West 178th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue where Lien is alleged to have been severely beaten. He was part of the initial confrontation when Cruz accused Lien of cutting him off on the Westside Highway. He remained in Harlem as his fellow bikers sped off in pursuit of Lien.
4. Cruz Was Arraigned Just Hours After His Arrest
Cruz arrested on Tuesday morning at 1 a.m. He will be arraigned in New York on October 1.
5. The Bikers Aren’t Helping the Investigation
A police source told The New York Post that the biker gang, known as The Hollwood Stunz, were not helping inquiries:
The motorcyclists are being uncooperative, those that have been interviewed. They’ve spoken to two of them [Cruz and another] and they’re full of crap. They’re saying they didn’t see anything. They’re saying, ‘I was just standing there.’ It’s a joke. They’re tracking down the others. They went out to Brooklyn last night to look for a third guy.