Police said a 62-year-old Queens woman was arrested and charged with allegedly driving while intoxicated (DWI), after she collided with an MTA bus on the Fordham Manor-Belmont border.

 

When contacted by Norwood News about the incident, police confirmed on May 11 that the crash was reported at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 23, at the intersection of Southern Boulevard and East Fordham Road, across the street from the New York Botanical Garden. Police said a 62-year-old woman was behind the wheel of a 2004 Dodge Durango, when she struck the back of an MTA bus being driven by a 41-year-old man.

NYPD officials said the woman, who they later identified as Maria Guevara of Sanford Avenue, Queens, was transported to St. Barnabas Hospital in stable condition. They added that Sanford was later arrested and charged with allegedly driving while intoxicated.

 

Norwood News was at the scene of the accident on the day it occurred and witnessed the apparent female driver lying on the roadway but did not see any bus at the scene of the accident. We therefore contacted police to make further inquiries.

 

On May 12, a second police source told Norwood News that a witness had also reported to police that the female driver had struck an MTA bus and had appeared to be intoxicated. The police source reiterated what had already been confirmed i.e. that after further investigation, the woman was arrested and removed to the hospital.

 

Norwood News asked the NYPD official why Guevara had been on the ground before getting in the ambulance. The NYPD spokesperson replied, “She was an intoxicated individual, and they were assisting her with getting out of the vehicle.” The female spokesperson then explained, “It was a side-swipe-type of incident… The driver [of the bus], when interviewed, also said he felt someone struck him, but he wasn’t sure who it was, so there was a further investigation into exactly what happened. She struck or kind of side-swiped the back of the bus.”

 

Attempts to reach Guevara through her address and through social media were unsuccessful.

 

A person arrested and charged with a crime is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.

 

Norwood News recently reported on a car accident on the Grand Concourse at Miriam Street in Bedford Park, after one vehicle crashed into a tree and burst into flames on Saturday, April 30. The driver told police he lost control of the vehicle due to the fact that there had allegedly been a bee in the car.