Pedro Tepozteco

 from Gothamist

A 26-year-old cyclist was killed in Brooklyn on Wednesday after he was struck by the driver of a passing truck—and once again, police seem to be blaming the victim for their own death.

Pedro
Tepozteco, a Sunset Park resident, was biking westbound on 47th Street
in Borough Park when he was run over by the driver of a box truck.
Authorities found the victim lying in the roadway near the intersection
of 17th Avenue with severe body trauma. He was transported to Maimondes
Hospital at around 5:30 p.m., and was pronounced dead soon after.

The
investigation into the fatality is ongoing. However, within hours of
Tepozteco's death, police had determined that "the bicyclist fell into
the side of the truck" as the driver was passing him.

It's
unclear how such a conclusion was reached. A spokesperson for the police
department could not say whether investigators viewed surveillance
footage or spoke to witnesses before sharing their determination.
"Investigations are fluid in nature," the spokesperson explained.

The Daily News reported

Tepozteco was hit by the passenger-side rear tires, leaving him sprawled in the street.

Medics rushed him to Maimonides Medical Center but he could not be saved, cops said.

Tepozteco
lived in Sunset Park and one of his neighbors said he came to New York
from Mexico and worked as a delivery man for a restaurant.

“I remember him working very hard,” she said. “He would work almost every day ... He was nice.”

The 29-year-old man driving the Hino box truck remained at the scene. No charges were immediately filed.