A homeless man who smashed a stolen car into a light pole in Lower Manhattan, sparking a blaze that nearby Karaoke clubgoers rescued him from, had swiped the car from Midtown before going on a wild five-mile spree downtown, cops said Saturday.
Criminal charges have yet to be filed against the man, who is believed to be in his 50s and was hospitalized following the fiery crash on Maiden Lane near Nassau St. in the Financial District around 7:10 p.m. Friday, cops said.
Karaoke club attendees who witnessed the crash managed to pull the driver from the smoking white Kia Forte before it burst into flames, witnesses told the Daily News.
Police said the owner of the Kia Forte with TLC plates had left the vehicle unoccupied and idling near the Chrysler Building at the corner of Lexington Ave. and E. 43rd St. in Midtown East at about 6:30 p.m. when the man jumped inside and drove off with it.
Sam Costanza for New York Daily News
The vehicle is pictured after hitting a lamp post on Maiden Lane and bursting into flames, on Friday, July 26, 2024.
He drove the Kia downtown, where he smashed into a Yellow 2022 Rav 4 on Broadway near Maiden Lane and argued with the car’s 56-year-old driver before peeling off, according to police.
A few moments later, he slammed into the light pole, cops said.
Marble Rodriguez, 60, was smoking a cigarette outside a John St. karaoke joint and saw the speeding Kia slam into the pole.
Rodriguez and two other men rushed to the driver’s aid and were shocked to recognize him as a homeless man who typically camped on the sidewalk outside a nearby drug store, he said.
“I looked at him and, oh my God, this is the guy who sleeps in front of the Duane Reade,” Rodriguez said.
The trio pulled the driver from the smoking livery car just moments before it erupted into flames.
“He was lying there with his eyes closed, bleeding from the mouth,” said Rodriguez. “I went into the car and turned it off. It was already smoking, and then there were flames.”
Paramedics took the driver to Bellevue Hospital, where he was expected to survive, cops said.
Criminal charges were pending Saturday.
