Police said an SUV hit parked cars, crossed a pedestrian island and struck men near Amsterdam Avenue.
NEW YORK CITY, NY — A 61-year-old Manhattan man was charged after police said he drove drunk into parked vehicles and pedestrians Friday evening on the Upper West Side, killing two men and injuring three others near West 109th Street and Amsterdam Avenue.
Police identified the driver as Elvin Suarez, an Upper West Side resident who lived blocks from the crash scene. He faces charges including manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter, vehicular assault and driving while intoxicated. The deaths of Jason Negron, 46, and Michael Saint-Hilaire, 35, turned a busy neighborhood corner into a crime scene and left relatives, neighbors and workers along Amsterdam Avenue grieving as investigators worked through the chain of collisions.
The crash happened around 6 p.m. Friday near 996 Amsterdam Ave., between West 109th Street and Cathedral Parkway, police said. Suarez was driving a 2019 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 north on Amsterdam Avenue when it first struck a parked 2013 Volkswagen Jetta south of West 109th Street, according to police accounts. The SUV kept moving through the intersection, went over a concrete pedestrian island and hit four men. Witness Eva Santiago said she saw the driver “swerving, driving really fast” before the SUV went up and came down on people near the corner.
After striking the pedestrians, the Mercedes hit a parked 1999 Chevrolet Astro van with a 51-year-old man inside, police said. The impact pushed the van into other parked vehicles, including a Honda CR-V, a Toyota Sienna, a Toyota 4Runner and a Nissan Altima. Emergency medical workers took Suarez, the four pedestrians and the van’s occupant to Mount Sinai Morningside. Negron and Saint-Hilaire were pronounced dead at the hospital. Police said Suarez, the 51-year-old van occupant and two other pedestrians, ages 44 and 36, were in stable condition. Officials did not immediately release the names of the surviving injured men.
Investigators said the crash unfolded in Morningside Heights, a dense stretch of the Upper West Side lined with apartment buildings, small businesses, bus stops and heavy foot traffic. The corner sits near Mount Sinai Morningside and Cathedral Parkway, where evening traffic often mixes with pedestrians, cyclists and delivery workers. Friends and neighbors described Negron as a doorman and Saint-Hilaire as a hospital worker and father of triplets. The crash left damaged vehicles along the block and drew residents who said the sound of the impact carried down the avenue.
Police arrested Suarez after the crash and said he was charged Saturday with two counts of manslaughter, three counts of vehicular manslaughter, two counts of vehicular assault and DWI. A police source said a blood alcohol test measured Suarez above the legal limit for driving. Attorney information for Suarez was not immediately available. The NYPD Highway District Collision Investigation Squad is leading the inquiry. Investigators were reviewing the vehicle path, damage to the parked cars, witness accounts and any video from nearby buildings or businesses.
Witnesses described a sudden, violent scene as the SUV crossed the island and hit the men near the sidewalk. One witness said the driver appeared confused after getting out of the vehicle. Others said bystanders rushed toward the wreckage before ambulances arrived. The crash happened outside a neighborhood where many people knew each other by sight, and some residents said the victims were familiar faces along Amsterdam Avenue. Police have not said whether speed, mechanical failure or any medical issue also played a role, and those questions remain under investigation.
The case remained active Sunday as police continued to document the crash site and prosecutors prepared the next steps in court. Suarez was in custody after receiving hospital care, and the injured men were reported stable. The next major milestone is Suarez’s court appearance and any updated findings from the collision investigation.
Author note: Last updated May 17, 2026.