Driver Arrested After Hit-And-Run Seriously Injures Bicyclist

MIDDLE ISLAND, NY — A Coram man was arrested after a hit-and-run crash that seriously injured a bicyclist in Middle Island Thursday afternoon, police said.

According to Suffolk police, Mirko Paniccia was driving a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado west on Middle Country Road, east of Summersweet Drive, when the pickup truck veered off the road and struck a bicyclist, who was riding eastbound on the westbound shoulder.

The bicyclist, who has not been identified, was transported to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of serious injuries.

Paniccia, 52, fled the scene, police said. Following an investigation, Paniccia was located and arrested outside his home in Coram at about 6 p.m.

Paniccia was charged with leaving the scene of an accident with serious injury. He is scheduled to be arraigned at a later date.