The armed robbery suspect behind the wheel of a minivan that jumped a curb and killed a beloved Harlem nun was arrested this morning, police said.
“We now have the driver of the car,” said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. “He is being questioned.”
Kelly said the suspect slid behind the wheel of the minivan after cops arrested 18-year-old William Robbins, the original driver, when they spotted the vehicle on Lenox Avenue Tuesday morning.
Cops believed the vehicle was used earlier in several armed robberies in the neighborhood.
The second suspect made a U-turn and sped along Lenox Avenue for nearly a mile in the Chrysler Pacifica before it collided with another minivan that was swerving to avoid a street sweeper.
Witnesses said the Chrysler spun across the wide avenue’s median, striking the nun, Sister Mary Celine Graham, 84, a nurse’s aide and another pedestrian.
Kelly said a police car was trailing the speeding Chrysler, but was not in close pursuit.
He said the second suspect was arrested at his residence nearly 18 hours after fleeing the scene.
The two other pedestrians and two people who were injured in the second minivan remained hospitalized.