Crime & Safety

Cyclist Fatality on Route 9

Police investigate the details today of the tragic accident last night: a Tarrytown driver struck a Sleepy Hollow man on a bicycle; 28-year-old Luis Zhizhpon was declared dead later at Westchester Medical Center.

Luis Zhizhpon, 28, a resident of Sleepy Hollow, was declared dead shortly after being struck by a car on Route 9 Monday night, Sleepy Hollow Police Lieutenant Frank Hrotko said.

On June 25, 11:11 p.m., a car coming southbound down Route 9 in the right lane struck Zhizhpon, going southbound on his bicycle, at the intersection of Millard Avenue in the Philipse Manor neighborhood. There is no sidewalk there, or break-down lane, though there are street lights, Hrotko said.

Officer Jose Cotarelo along with Sleepy Hollow Volunteer Ambulance Corps Captain Shelly Glover attempted to do CPR on the victim, and officer Jim Warren administered oxygen. 

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Zhizhpon was transported by ambulance to Westchester Medical Center where he was declared dead “a short time later,” Hrotko said. His family has been notified.  

Sleepy Hollow Police reached out to Ossining Police to help investigate as they have an accident investigation team. "Police are still putting together what happened," Hrotko said, though he could confirm that the cyclist was wearing a helmet.

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The driver, identified as Carlos Loja, 59, of Tarrytown, has not been charged pending the outcome of the investigation. He was driving a Nissan Pathfinder. At the scene, Loja was given several sobriety field tests which he passed with no sign of alcohol. 

Route 9 was shut down overnight between Bellwood and Pierson avenues from 11:15 p.m. until 3:45 a.m.

A cyclist was struck and killed recently near the Rockland County riverfront. On June 9 around 2 p.m., a 53-year-old woman riding the winding road of 9W through Upper Grandview was hit by a Sparkill driver. The driver was not charged. Janet Martinez, a mother of two and grandmother of one, was declared dead soon after being transported to Nyack Hospital. She was also wearing her helmet.


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