21-07-2025
Pair in stolen car that killed two in horrific NYC crash had illegal gun stashed in trunk: prosecutors
The stolen car that plowed into two bystanders and killed both in Chinatown was packing heat.
Manhattan prosecutors said the reckless pair now charged in the horrific Saturday morning wreck had a gun stashed in the trunk of the stolen blue Chevy Malibu when it slammed into the victims and struck an NYPD van in a shocking caught-on-video tragedy.
Accused driver Autumn Donna Ascencio Romero, 23, and 22-year-old passenger, Kennedy Lecraft, allegedly fled the scene of the horror but were nabbed by cops nearby.
4 A stolen Chevy Malibu plowed over two bystanders and struck an NYPD in a Saturday morning wreck in Chinatown.
Obtained by the NY Post
4 Autumn Donna Ascencio Romero, 23, left, and Kennedy Lecraft, 22, are charged in a fatal wreck in Chinatown.
William Farrington, Michael Nagle
Romero, who was awaiting arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court on Monday, was charged with murder, manslaughter, possession of stolen property and gun possession after prosecutors said cops found a gun and ammunition in the stolen vehicle after the fatal crash.
Lecraft was arraigned earlier on Monday on charges of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, criminal possession of stolen property and criminal possession of a weapon.
Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Shamahs set bail for Lecraft at $150,000 cash or a $300,000 bond.
4 Kennedy Lecraft, 22, was charged with gun possession in the Saturday morning fatal crash in Chinatown.
Michael Nagle
4 The early morning Chinatown crash Saturday killed May Kwok, 63, and Kevin Scott Cruickshank, 63.
William Farrington
Records show that Romero already had another pending criminal case tied to a traffic mishap in Brooklyn in April that left a 22-year-old woman seriously injured, but was free without bail.
In the deadly Saturday morning incident, the Chevy had been rented last month but was overdue at an Enterprise Rent-a-Car lot by 17 days, law enforcement sources said.
The car was filled with drugs and booze, according to sources.
Cruickshank, who was riding his bicycle when he was struck and killed, was a safe-streets advocate who was active with Transportation Alternatives, a family spokesperson said.
Kwok's brother told The Post his sister had struggled with mental illness in the past and was fond of relaxing on the same bench when she attended church in Chinatown.
