Truck Driver Arrested For Killing Cyclist In E Harlem, Police Say

EAST HARLEM, NY — A truck driver that fatally struck a cyclist while making an illegal turn onto an East Harlem bridge and drove away from the scene was hit with criminal charges, police said.

Luc Vu, 48, was arrested Tuesday and charged with reckless driving, failing to yield to a cyclist, failure to exercise due care and traffic violations for the illegal turn, police said. Vu was driving a dump truck onto the Willis Avenue Bridge on Nov. 9 when he struck and killed 25-year-old aspiring pro wrestler Matt Travis.

Medics rushed Travis to Harlem Hospital where he was pronounced dead, said police. Travis was the 28th bicyclist to be killed in New York City this year. A rise in cyclist deaths — there were just 10 in 2018 — led New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio to launch a $58.4 million plan to install more than 80 miles of bike lanes to city streets by the end of 2021.

Vu's charges come with a maximum of 30 days in jail. The driver was working for New Jersey-based trucking company D&A Contracting when he struck Travis, Streetsblog first reported. The Nov. 9 collision was the second time a D&A Contracting driver killed a cyclist in the span of a few months, according to the report.

D&A Contracting owner Jim Dezao told the publication that Vu was fired after his arrest.