A BMW driver left his passenger to die after crashing into a Staten Island utility pole — then took the license plates off the wreck and ran, cops and sources said.
The 25-year-old driver was speeding down Goethals Road north, near the Jules Drive intersection in Graniteville around 10:10 p.m. Monday – with 26-year-old Usman
Chugahtai in the backseat and another passenger in the car – when he lost control and veered onto the sidewalk, cops said.
The Beemer slammed into a utility pole and fire hydrant — sending the car spinning and ejecting Chugahtai from the vehicle, police said.
The unidentified motorist ran off on foot, cops said – but not before ripping the license plates off the mangled vehicle, according to law enforcement sources.
Chugahtai, who lived in Port Richmond about 2 miles away, was pronounced dead on scene by EMS, cops said.
Another passenger, a 23-year-old man, was taken to Richmond University Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition.
Photos obtained by the Staten Island Advance show the wreckage after the wild driver allegedly plowed through several backyard fences.
No arrests had been made in the hit-and-run by Tuesday evening.