By Christina Santucci
A funeral was held Wednesday morning for a 68-year-old woman who was fatally struck by an SUV as she crossed Grand Avenue Saturday morning en route to Maspeth Bingo Hall, authorities and a witness said.
Richmond Hill resident Abel Tinoco, the 28-year-old man who was behind the wheel of the 2002 Mitsubishi Montero SUV that hit her, was charged with aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle, police said.
Tinoco’s license had been suspended for the first and only time in October, according to the criminal complaint filed by the Queens district attorney’s office.
Police believe Elmhurst resident Angela Hurtado had been crossing Grand Avenue when the SUV made a left turn from 69th Place and struck her. Only right-hand turns are permitted at the intersection, according to traffic signs in the area.
“The lady was on her way to the bingo hall,” said Jose Rojas, 23, who had been getting a haircut at a shop, which looks out onto the street. “She didn’t have time to yell because she landed straight on her back. The first thing that hit was her head onto the street.”
Rojas said Hurtado was walking along at the time of the accident.
Emergency responders were called to the intersection at 10:52 a.m. and brought the senior to Elmhurst Hospital Center in serious condition, a spokesman for the Fire Department said.
Hurtado was pronounced dead about three hours later at the hospital as a result of the head trauma she sustained, according to the court document.
Her wake was held Tuesday at Gerald J. Neufeld Funeral Home in Elmhurst Tuesday followed by a mass Wednesday morning at St. Bartholomew, where she was a longtime parishioner.
“Most of the people at the 9 a.m. mass knew her,” according to a spokeswoman for the church, who said Hurtado attended services daily.
Reach managing editor Christina Santucci by e-mail at timesledgerphotos@gmail.com by phone at 718-260-4589.
