A woman allegedly struck a New York Police Department (NYPD) police officer with her car in Manhattan, New York, Wednesday and said she did it intentionally, authorities said, according to the New York Post (NYP).
Sahara Dula, 24, was driving in the Upper East Side near a crime scene unrelated to this incident, police said, according to the NYP. A group allegedly stole from a high-end clothing store nearby around 4:30 p.m., according to police, the NYP reported.
As the police were blocking off the alleged thieves’s getaway car, another officer noticed Dula driving on the wrong side of the road, police said, the outlet reported. Dula allegedly hit the officer with her black Lexus after he told her to pull over, according to authorities, the outlet reported.
A BLM activist involved in NYC pro-Palestine protests has been arrested for ramming a car into an NYPD officer on Jan. 17. Sahara Dula was arrested on suspicion of assault with serious physical injury, vehicular assault, reckless endangerment and more. pic.twitter.com/PT3fKXuERd
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) January 19, 2024
The alleged incident was caught on camera by another driver’s dash cam, photos from another report Friday from the NYP appear to show. The dashcam footage has been shared on social media. The officer appears to fly over the hood of the car. Other officers can then be seen rushing to his aid in the video. In the corner of the video, an individual, allegedly Dula, appears to get out of the car with her hands behind her back and is cuffed by another officer.
“I told the cop I wanted to go straight, and he wouldn’t move, so I hit him. I did it on purpose,” Dula allegedly informed investigators, the NYP reported, citing court documents. Part of the road was closed off due to the police attending to the robbery, according to the outlet.
“F–k these cops! He wouldn’t move!” she allegedly screamed shortly after the incident occurred, according to the court documents. “F–k these cops, it’s a lesson to him, and hopefully he doesn’t want to be a cop anymore,” she allegedly added, a source told NYP.
“Another night, another hospital emergency room, this time with our brother police officer who was run down on the Upper East Side,” the New York Police Benevolent Association (PBA) said on Twitter. “Thankfully he will be OK, but we need all NYers to help us protect the cops who protect your neighborhood.”
The officer involved suffered a fractured leg and arm, police said, according to NBC New York. (RELATED: Manhunt Underway After 1 Officer Fatally Shot, Second Officer Injured).
As our @NYPD19Pct brother continues to recover after being intentionally run down by a car, PBA President Patrick Hendry asks why the driver — who proudly admits that she struck the officer on purpose — has not been charged with attempted murder. pic.twitter.com/oU8hemXfOM
— NYC PBA (@NYCPBA) January 19, 2024
Dula was charged with vehicular assault, impaired driving, and reckless endangerment, according to the NYP. The PBA president, Patrick Hendry, questioned why Dula wasn’t charged with attempted murder during an NBC interview, the organization shared in a post on Twitter.