Huntington Station Man Killed in Hit-and-Run, Driver Arrested, Police Say

Bacilio Mardoqueo Vasquez Vasquez was crossing New York Avenue on a Sunday evening when a gray Toyota SUV struck him and kept going. The 44-year-old Huntington Station man died at Huntington Hospital. By Monday morning, Suffolk County police had a man in custody.

Manuel Flores, 28, also of Huntington Station, was charged with leaving the scene of a fatal motor vehicle crash and is being held at the Suffolk County Police Second Precinct. He was scheduled to be arraigned Monday at First District Court in Central Islip, according to police.

The crash happened at approximately 5:40 p.m. on March 8 just south of the West 19th Street intersection on New York Avenue. Vasquez Vasquez was walking west to east across the roadway, not at an intersection, when the SUV traveling northbound struck him, the police press office wrote in an email. The driver did not stop and continued northbound on New York Avenue.

Vasquez Vasquez was transported by ambulance to Huntington Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Investigators initially said the vehicle was believed to have sustained front-end damage on the driver's side.

Suffolk County Police Department Major Case Unit detectives took over the investigation. Flores, whose address was listed as 36 Leyden St. in Huntington Station, was arrested after police announced the case Monday morning. Police did not immediately explain what evidence connected Flores to the crash, and Flores could not be reached for comment.

The death adds to a troubling count on Long Island roads. In 2024, 37 pedestrians were killed by drivers in Suffolk County alone, part of 63 pedestrian fatalities across Long Island and 308 statewide, according to data compiled by the University at Albany-based Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research.

Anyone with information about the March 8 crash can contact the Major Case Unit at 631-852-6555 or Suffolk County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS. Anonymous tips can be submitted through the P3 Tips mobile app or at P3Tips.com. Information leading to an arrest may be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000.