Ma stole $116G in benefits
A doctor riding his bike through Central Park wiped out on ice and was fatally struck by a school bus full of kids Wednesday morning, police said.
Dr. Daniel Cammerman, a 50-year-old pediatrician affiliated with Mount Sinai, was rushed to Mount Sinai Hospital but could not be saved.
The large yellow school bus hit Cammerman, who was biking on the park’s 96th St. transverse, at about 8:40 a.m. Both the bus and the bicyclist were headed east on the road, which doesn’t have a bike lane.
The bus was trying to pass Cammerman when his bike hit a patch of ice and he fell in front of the bus and was struck by the driver’s side front tire, police sources said.
Cammerman lived on Central Park West next to the entrance to the traverse and worked at Uptown Pediatrics on the Upper East Side, according to Mount Sinai’s website.
None of the 14 children on board the bus were hurt.
The 54-year-old bus driver was also unharmed. He faced no immediate charges and was let go by cops after the crash.
“We are deeply saddened by the news of the tragic loss of Dr. Daniel J. Cammerman, a beloved physician, teacher, mentor and role model,” Mount Sinai said in statement. “Our prayers and heartfelt sympathy go out to his family, friends and students and colleagues at Mount Sinai. This is a great loss for the Mount Sinai community. For this reason, we will be offering counseling and support during this very difficult time.”
Cammerman grew up in England and studied at Oxford University, according to an online profile. He then studied medicine at the University of Chicago. He was a computer expert at Uptown Pediatrics, overhauling their electronic medical records system. He also was heavily involved in medical education at Mount Sinai.
Parents at Uptown Pediatrics were shocked by his death.
“I was there this morning waiting for him with my 9month-old,” Audrey Laricchia Selnick wrote on Facebook. “He was truly such a special doctor and a wonderful human being. I’m so sad. He’s irreplaceable.”
“I’m devastated,” Christie Coby Donaghy wrote in a post. “My oldest saw him for only a year before we left for the suburbs. My newborn (who had a few setbacks) was in wonderful care but what made me love him more was that he made this scared, first time mom feel so incredibly at ease.”
Wednesday marks the 29th cyclist who has died while riding on New York City’s streets in 2019, and the 28th who has been killed by a motor vehicle. That’s nearly triple the 10 cyclists who died while riding in the city in all of 2018.
Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Danny Harris released a statement lamenting the death.
“As a city, we have scores of examples where street improvements, including protected bike lanes, save lives and build a better city for everyone,” Harris said. “Despite our successes, New York City has still failed to build a protected and connected bike network that could have prevented this tragedy and countless others.”
She’s a friend with illegal benefits.
A Bronx mother of four admitted stealing more than $116,000 in city welfare money by posing as a impoverished and unattached parent since 2014 — even as her live-in domestic partner collected a paycheck from the city Sanitation Department and then the FDNY, authorities charged Wednesday.
Elena Marrero, 32, pocketed more than $54,000 in Medicaid benefits, nearly $40,000 in welfare cash and almost $23,000 in food stamps in the past five years, said state Inspector General Letizia Tagliafierro in announcing the plea deal.
The law enforcer noted that Marrero was also working at a pizza joint in 2016-17 while illegally collecting the aid.
“This individual perpetrated a six-figure fraud against taxpayers,” said. Tagliafierro. “My office and our law enforcement partner will pursue anyone who defrauds and taints these critical benefits programs.”
As part of her plea to falsifying business records, Marrero agreed to pay $30,000 in restitution and entered a civil judgment to repay the additional money.
Though Marrero was required by law to list her domestic partner on applications with the city Human Resources Administration, she instead omitted the name and made no mention that he lived with her and their four kids, authorities said.