Why A Group Of Bicyclists Attacked Car In New York City

A man in New York City wants answers after a group of bicyclists attacked his BMW SUV while he and his mother were inside of the vehicle.

The incident took place Tuesday while 36-year-old Max Torgovnick was driving down Fifth Avenue at East 22nd Street, according to CBS New York.

Torgovnick, who lives on the Upper East Side, was with his 74-year-old mother when he noticed bicyclists grabbing on to his vehicle and using it for a ride.

However, things took a violent turn when one of the bicyclists collided with the vehicle, and the group responded by attacking.

“There was someone doing a wheelie right behind the car, and he crashed into the back, and that’s kind of what instigated everything,” Torgovnick explained.

“All of them were off their bikes surrounding the car, banging on the glass, banging on the hood, screaming, ‘Get out of the car! Roll down your window!’”

Torgovnick revealed his mother became hysterical and called the police. “Before I knew it, my mom is crying. She’s screaming into the phone to the 911 operator, ‘Help! Send help! We are going to die. They are going to kill us,'” he said.

Although Torgovnick initially placed his vehicle in park out of fear he would hurt some outside of the car, he admitted he was ready to take action when one of the cyclists broke his windshield.

“It wasn’t until they started jumping on the windshield and smashed the glass and we had glass raining on top of us that I saw an opening, and I said, ‘I need to get out of here. I need to now protect my mom. This is now a point of self-defense. This is life or death,’” he said.

However, once they destroyed his windshield, the group fled the scene. Police have since released images of members from the group, who they believe are teens.

“I’ve lived here my entire life as a New Yorker, for 36 years. I feel like I’m entitled to answers from the city as to what allowed this to happen and what they’re going to do to make sure it doesn’t happen to anybody else again,” Torgovnick said.

On Wednesday, police arrested a 15-year-old from the group of cyclists, who has been charged with criminal mischief and rioting, according to Fox News. The teen, who is from Queens, will be charged as a juvenile.

Authorities have not released the name of the suspect and are still searching for the other bicyclists involved in the attack. A source revealed around 25 bicyclists were present during the attack, and six were responsible for the damage to Torgovnick’s SUV.