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Brooklyn U-Haul driver was suffering mental health crisis, has prior arrests: NYPD
By
Catalina Gonella
Published Feb 14, 2023
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Kyle Mazza/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
By
Catalina Gonella
Published Feb 14, 2023
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Police said the driver who fatally hit one pedestrian and injured seven others with a U-Haul truck in Brooklyn on Monday was suffering a mental health crisis during the violent incident while off of his medication.
Weng Sor, 62, of Las Vegas, Nev., was taken into custody Monday afternoon after hitting eight pedestrians while erratically driving the rented truck through several Brooklyn neighborhoods’ streets, sidewalks and bike lanes, speeding through red lights, police said. A 44-year-old man who sustained injuries to his head after being thrown off his bicycle later died at the hospital, cops said. Seven others ranging in ages from 30 to 66 were injured, including one police officer.
According to Chief of Detectives James Essig, Sor said he saw an invisible object come towards his car on Monday morning.
“And at that point, he says, ‘I've had enough,’ and he goes on his rampage,” Essig said.
The suspect’s family confirmed that he was off of his medication at the time, according to police.
“Based on interviews with his family members, and confirmed when interrogated by members of the New York City detective bureau, we believe Mr. Sor was suffering from a mental health crisis,” Essig said. “At this time, there is no nexus to terrorism.”
Sor was charged with one count of murder and seven counts of attempted murder, Commissioner Keechant Sewell announced on Monday.
A timeline of Monday's events, according to the NYPD.
Courtesy NYPD
“NYPD investigators are working with our law enforcement partners including prosecutors to build the strongest case possible and to deliver a measure of justice to these victims,” Sewell said.
Attorney information for Sor was not available.
Sor was stopped while driving multiple times in the days leading up to the incident, according to police. Just eight days before the incident on Feb. 5, he was arrested for reckless driving and marijuana possession by South Carolina Highway Patrol, Essig said. On Feb. 8, he was stopped by New York Highway Patrol and given summonses for speeding and having a commercial vehicle on the Belt Parkway.
According to Essig, Sor had rented the truck in Florida on Feb. 4 before making his way up to New York. On Feb. 8, Sor showed up to his estranged wife and son’s residence to take a shower, and got into an argument with his son, cops said.
Sor also has a number of prior arrests, mostly in his native town of Las Vegas, dating back to the early 2000s, Essig said. Those include a DWI in 2002, evading a police officer in 2002, battery in 2005, resisting arrest 2014, domestic battery in 2015, battery with a deadly weapon in 2017 and battery with a deadly weapon in 2020, Essig said.
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Catalina Gonella
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