Jeep driver charged in fatal Soundview e-bike hit-and-run
A driver in a 2015 Jeep fatally hit 21-year-old e-bike rider Christian Castelan at Metcalf Avenue and East 172nd Street on July 3, 2022, and police later charged Jetsy Rodriguez.
What We Know
Christian Castelan, 21, was riding north on Metcalf Avenue when police said a driver in a white 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee, traveling west and turning left onto East 172nd Street, hit him just before 3 p.m. on July 3, 2022. Castelan was taken to Jacobi, where he died. The official crash record listed traffic-control disregard for the moving Jeep. Police said the driver did not remain at the scene; in 2024, they arrested Jetsy Rodriguez and charged her with manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and leaving the scene of an accident.
Police said the driver left after the collision
Police said Christian Castelan was riding north on Metcalf Avenue at about 2:57 p.m. when a driver in a white 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee traveled west, turned left onto East 172nd Street, and hit him near the intersection. Police said Castelan was ejected from his bike, and EMS took him to NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi, where he was pronounced dead.
After the impact, police said the driver continued forward and collided with two parked, unoccupied vehicles, a 2021 Hyundai Tucson and a 2000 Honda Accord. The official record also lists a 2015 Jeep, a 2021 Hyundai SUV, a 2000 Honda sedan, and Castelan's e-bike.
Metcalf Avenue had a recent record of serious crashes
The crash happened at Metcalf Avenue and East 172nd Street in Soundview. On Metcalf Avenue in the Bronx, CrashCountNYC recorded 146 crashes, 74 injuries, 4 serious injuries, and 2 deaths from the start of 2022 through June 1, 2026.
The official record cited traffic-control disregard
The city crash record listed traffic-control disregard as a contributing factor for the Jeep driver. The record says the Jeep driver was going straight before the crash, while the later police account reported by Norwood News said the driver was making a left turn onto East 172nd Street.
A 2024 arrest followed the fatal hit-and-run
Police said they arrested Jetsy Rodriguez, 28, of Unionport, on Feb. 22, 2024, and charged her with manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and leaving the scene of an accident. Norwood News noted that Rodriguez is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in court.
Early reports said the driver left with a young passenger after the crash. The New York Post described the passenger as a child; the Daily News, citing police, described the passenger as a baby. A neighbor told the Daily News, "She didn't even check on him," and said, "She was flying."