An underage driver was arrested and charged with manslaughter this week in connection to a September crash in Queens that killed a 30-year-old motorcyclist back in September, cops said.
The 16-year-old – who was only 15 at the time of the collision – was driving a black 2018 Mitsubishi SUV when he allegedly rear-ended Luis Mareno, 30, who was riding a black 2020 Triumph motorcycle on the westbound Long Island Expressway at Exit 22A near 108th Street in Corona around 12:45 a.m. Sept. 26, police said.
The impact caused Mareno to fall off his bike, only to be struck by a 2015 Toyota Sienna with a 30-year-old woman behind the wheel, authorities said.
The teen, who was 15 at the time, allegedly rear-ended 30-year-old motorcyclist Luis Mareno on the Long Island Expressway Sept. 26. UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
The motorcycle then spun across three lanes and ultimately rammed into the driver’s side rear of an unoccupied 2017 Infiniti Q50, which was stopped along the northwest shoulder of the Long Island Expressway, cops said.
Mareno, a Corona resident, was left unconscious and unresponsive with severe head trauma and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
All of the vehicles – including the teen’s – stayed at the scene and the young motorist wasn’t immediately arrested, cops said.
But he was ultimately charged Thursday with manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, assault and leaving the scene of an accident following an extensive investigation by the NYPD’s Collision Investigation Squad and Queens Family Court, cops and sources said.
He is being charged as a juvenile and his identity was not revealed because of his age.
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New Yorkers need to be at least 16 years old to obtain a learner’s permit in the Empire State – and anyone under 16 cannot drive, even with a permit or license issued by another state.