Queens hit-and-run: Two moped drivers killed in fiery crash in Elmhurst

ELMHURST, Queens (WABC) — It was a frightening series of events Sunday in Queens. Two men rode a moped down 57th Avenue in Elmhurst – seconds later, a hatchback crashed into two parked cars and burst into flames.

The driver of the hatchback, a Volkswagen Golf, ran over the moped riders, killing them, before he or she ran away.

A neighbor who called 911 and watched from home said the sound of the crash and the fire truck sirens woke everyone up.

First responders arrived to take a person thrown from the moped to the hospital. The other was pronounced dead at the scene.

Firefighters extinguished the flames and police began searching for the driver who abandoned the silver Volkswagen Golf with Illinois plates. The NYPD’s Collision Investigation Squad has the remains of the car and is working to identify it.

Police believe the driver failed to negotiate a curve on 57th Avenue and likely drove too fast and too far, causing him to hit the moped head-on.

Police still have not identified the moped driver and passenger. The moped was not registered.

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