New Hyde Park Man Hit on Jericho Turnpike Thursday Night

Nassau County Police have confirmed that a New Hyde Park man was hit on Jericho Turnpike on Thursday night near the Twin Peaks Fitness Center at 15 Jericho Turnpike.

According to police, at about 6 p.m. on Dec. 26, a vehicle driven by 68-year old Shahida Islam of Floral Park struck a 24-year old male victim on Jericho Turnpike.

Police stated that Islam kept driving believing she had hit her mirror before pulling into the parking lot of the gym, exiting her vehicle and entering the fitness center. Officers later located Islam inside the gym and placed her under arrest.

She is being charged with leaving the scene of an accident with injury, a misdemeanor, and was released on an appearance ticket, according to police.

The male victim was taken to Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola and treated for injury and pain to his shoulder and neck.

Update 4:30 p.m.: The male victim has been identified as Jamil Salim, Jr., a member of the Garden City Park Fire Department.

In a telephone conversation from his hospital room at Winthrop, Salim, a member of the 82nd Airborne Division at Ft. Bragg, NC, who was deployed in Afghanistan for the past three years, stated that he had been home on leave for Christmas beginning six days prior to the incident. He said that at the time just prior to the accident he was getting a haircut because he had planned on taking a trip into Manhattan to see the Rockefeller Centre Christmas Tree.

Upon returning to his car, which was parked on the north side of Jericho Turnpike facing westbound near Spanky's Bar, Salim said that he waited for a red light before going to the driver's side of his vehicle and locating his keys to open the door. However, when traffic began moving again, Salim said that he saw a white BMW driving dangerously close to other parked cars and that he could not get out of the way with the bumper hitting his right leg and causing multiple injuries to his person.

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