Murder charge for suspect in high-speed Brooklyn hit-and-run that killed grandmother, critically injured 8-year-old grandson

A suspect has been arrested for murder for the devastating June hit-and-run crash that killed a doting 67-year-old Brooklyn grandmother and left her 8-year-old grandson clinging to life, police said Thursday.

Tyler Green was apprehended early Thursday and charged with murder, manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, assault and reckless endangerment, cops said.

Green, 22, of Bedford-Stuyvesant, was also charged with leaving the scene of an accident, speeding and reckless driving.

Surveillance video showed him running back to his home on Gates Ave. near Marcus Garvey Blvd. about a mile away, prosecutors said.

Green’s DNA was found on the deployed airbag in the car, they added.

“I’m happy that he’s caught so he won’t hurt anyone else and won’t kill anyone else,” said Lindy Christopher, 38, whose mother was killed and whose young son is still recovering from the crash.

Police say Green was responsible for the tragedy near Macon St. and Ralph Ave. in Bedford-Stuyvesant as he fled a police traffic stop. Three others were hurt during the wild five-block getaway before the stolen car slammed into a building.

The incident unfolded around 7:10 p.m. on June 25 when cops pulled over a Honda HR-V at the corner of Ralph Ave. and Chauncey St. because it had mismatched license plates — which officers took as a sign the car may have been stolen.

Two men inside the vehicle appeared to be smoking marijuana, cops said. As officers approached, the driver — now believed to be Green — hit the gas and sped north on Ralph Ave.

The speeding Honda HR-V veered into oncoming traffic to go around two cars idling at a stoplight and struck a 28-year-old cyclist, cops said.

The out-of-control speeding car then sideswiped an unoccupied Nissan Pathfinder and roared through a crosswalk, where it plowed into two pedestrians — Lyn Christopher and her grandson Jacob Butler, who had just visited nearby Saratoga Park.

The collision sent the grandmother and grandson flying through the air, surveillance video shows. Christopher died at the scene. The grandson was rushed to Maimonides Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition and put on a ventilator.

The driver continued on, striking a motorist in a Honda Accord before mounting the sidewalk near Halsey St., hitting a 43-year-old man and then slamming into a building.

The two occupants of the crashed Honda HR-V ran off. A possible suspect was taken into custody at the time and interviewed, but was let go after questioning.

The bicyclist, the 43-year-old pedestrian and the struck motorist were all taken to area hospitals with minor injuries.

More than three months later, Jacob is still struggling to recover from a traumatic brain injury, a broken leg and broken ribs, relatives said.

A portion of his skull was removed because his brain was swollen, and doctors have not replaced it yet, said his mom Lindy Christopher.

“He’s very hurt and we don’t know if we’ll get our son back,” Christopher said. “He was very battered and bruised. He still had scars on his face. It’s very sad and very painful.”

Green’s arrest brings little comfort, said Christopher, who is also struggling with her mother’s tragic death.

“It can’t bring my mother back. It can’t bring my son back to normalcy,” she said. “It’s a lot of mixed emotions.”

Jacob and his 18-year-old sister moved with their mother out of their grandmother’s home to Atlanta in September 2021. The crash occurred when they were Lyn Christopher in the city for a few weeks to enjoy summer in New York, relatives said.

Christopher flies weekly from Georgia to be with her son Jacob in New York, where he is in a rehabilitation center. The family has set up a GoFundMe to help with the costs.

Christopher had stayed in Brooklyn for a while to be with her son, but moved back to Atlanta to be with her daughter so she could finish high school.

Jacob’s sister was walking a few steps ahead when her brother and grandmother were struck. “She has PTSD and has therapy,” said Christopher.

“This has the capability of ruining our lives, but I won’t let it.”

Green’s apprehension was one of two high-profile arrests announced Thursday in emotionally-charged fatal hit-and-run incidents. The other bust was of Roosevelt Rose, 56, of Jamaica, Queens, who was allegedly behind the wheel of a stolen dump truck that crashed into several vehicles on a Queens street, crushing to death Florence Ngwu between two parked cars on Mother’s Day.

Both arrests were made by NYPD Highway District officers.