The driver who allegedly struck and killed a heroic Park Slope nanny nearly two years ago has been arrested and charged, the NYPD announced on Thursday.
Mamadou Bathily, a 70-year-old man, was cuffed on Wednesday, according to police. Bathily faces charges of failure to yield to pedestrians and failure to exercise due care following the 2021 incident.
On Dec. 20, 2021, Bathily allegedly struck 52-year-old Arcellie “Cellie” Muschamp and a one-year-old boy she cared for in his pickup truck at the intersection of Union Street and 5th Avenue as the pair crossed the street in the crosswalk. Muschamp was pushing the child, Rowan, in his stroller when she saw the truck coming toward them, and reportedly shoved the stroller out of the way as the vehicle struck her, saving Rowan’s life.
While the child remained uninjured, Muschamp was found unconscious in the street and rushed to NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital in critical condition. She was pronounced dead nearly two weeks later.
Bathily was apprehended on Dec. 6, 2023, at approximately 4 p.m. He is expected to appear in court in January, after being released without bail in Brooklyn Criminal Court on Wednesday.
After the crash, Rowan’s parents, Patrick Mullen and Katie Duhaime, started a GoFundMe for Muschamp, who they said was “truly our hero.”
“We are truly heartbroken by this loss of such a wonderful soul and know she is now watching down over us all,” Mullen wrote at the time.
