Driver Charged After Construction Flagger Killed on Myrtle Ave
A 37-year-old pedestrian working in the roadway was killed at Myrtle Avenue and Walworth Street on Oct. 29, 2024, and police charged Clyde Mercury with criminally negligent homicide.
What We Know
At about 1:53 p.m. on Oct. 29, 2024, a 37-year-old pedestrian working in the roadway was killed at Myrtle Avenue and Walworth Street in Brooklyn, and one motorist was injured. News reports identified the man as Luis Mario Sangurima, a construction flagger, and said police charged Clyde Mercury with criminally negligent homicide, reckless endangerment, reckless driving and failure to exercise due care. The reports agree that the crash happened beside a construction zone as a driver tried to pass or get around a truck, but they differ on direction and vehicle description: ABC7 described a westbound Ford Transit, while the Daily News described an eastbound Enterprise rental van.
A traffic flagger was hit beside a construction zone
The city crash record says a 37-year-old male pedestrian was working in the roadway when he was killed at 1:53 p.m. at Myrtle Avenue and Walworth Street. The record also lists one injured motorist.
The Daily News, citing police and surveillance video it reviewed, reported that Clyde Mercury tried to get around a slow-moving box truck near Walworth Street, moved into oncoming traffic beside a construction zone, sideswiped the truck, hit Sangurima, and then hit an oncoming Honda Odyssey.
Myrtle Avenue narrowed around active work
The crash happened on Myrtle Avenue near Walworth Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant, between Walworth and Sandford streets. The Daily News reported that work crews had taken over part of the street and that Sangurima was directing drivers through a narrow lane past the site.
Police and press reports identified the worker and the charged driver
The Daily News identified the man killed as Luis Mario Sangurima, 37, a construction flagger from Newark. ABC7 and the Daily News reported that he was wearing reflective gear or a reflective yellow vest and was directing traffic away from or around the construction site.
Police identified the driver as Clyde Mercury, 36. ABC7 reported that he was set to be arraigned in Brooklyn court; the Daily News reported that his arraignment in Brooklyn Criminal Court was pending Wednesday.
Reports cited speed and an attempted pass, with some details in conflict
Witnesses told ABC7 that the driver in the white van was going too fast and was trying to pass a truck without the space or right of way. Witness Michael Matson said, "He was going so fast," while describing the impact to ABC7.
The public accounts do not line up on every detail. ABC7 reported that police described a Ford Transit traveling westbound, while the Daily News reported that Mercury was driving an eastbound Enterprise rental van. News12 also reported an eastbound driver at high speed.
Mercury was arrested and charged
ABC7 and the Daily News reported that police charged Mercury with criminally negligent homicide, reckless endangerment, reckless driving and failure to exercise due care. The Daily News reported that police arrested him at the scene.
Medics took Sangurima to Woodhull Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to ABC7 and the Daily News.