NEW YORK — When Mike Chen first learned of his cousin’s death from New York Police Department officers, he was told that there has been a car accident. A few hours passed before Chen and his family put the pieces together.
“Later we found out he was one of the victims from the U-Haul,” Chen said, still shocked Tuesday, a day after 44-year-old single dad YiJie Ye was mowed down.
Nine people including a police officer were struck by the U-Haul driver who went on a road rampage Monday through the streets of Brooklyn. Ye was the only victim who died.
Investigators are trying to piece together the puzzle of what made suspect Weng Sor flip out and barrel through the Bay Ridge neighborhood with a U-Haul battering ram.
Ye’s relatives have their own tasks to tend to — explaining the tragedy to Ye’s young children, and getting his grieving mother from China to the U.S.
“The kids are staying with an aunt in Chinatown,” said Chen, the owner of the building where his cousin lived. “They are very sad about the loss of their dad but they are safe.”
Ye has been living in the building since he divorced his wife about five years ago. He was the father of three teens, twin boys and a girl.
“Everything happened so immediately,” Chen said. “In the coming few days we will reach out to the wife to see if she wants to take care of the kids or pass the guardianship to her sister-in-law.”
“We haven’t gotten a chance to talk to the ex-wife yet because right now there are so many things we need to take care of and the kids are our No. 1 priority,” he added.
No. 2 on the list is getting Ye’s mother over from China. He said the mayor’s office has offered assistance to work out the details
“At the moment, they are working with us to get the visa approved for his mother who is in China right now,” said another cousin, Tim Chen. “Hopefully she can join the grandkids as soon as possible.”
Mike Chen described his cousin as a hard-working loving father who had taken a job with GrubHub to support his family.
“He was a very good dad,” said neighbor Peter Chuc. “Last time I went down there he was cooking for the kids and they were playing around. Sometimes he used to go collect cans after work. Very hardworking guy.”
Officials said Ye suffered blunt force trauma to the body and head when he was struck by the truck at Fort Hamilton and Bay Ridge Parkway. He was rushed to NYU Langone Hospital-Brooklyn, where he later died.
It was unclear if Ye, who charged his electric bike outside his home, was working at the time he was struck but his family is almost certain he was.
Other victims include Mohamed Abdelmagid, 67, seen in a dramatic video in a blue jacket diving out of the way when the U-Haul mounted a sidewalk with police in hot pursuit. He was expected to be released from the hospital Tuesday afternoon.
Abdelmagid was about to walk into his job at a car service when he was injured on 72nd Street and Third Avenue.
“He’d seen the truck jump the curb and he tried to get out of the way,” said his son, Omar Ali, 23,. “His co-workers ran out and tried to help him.”
He said his father’s leg, wrist and rib area are bruised and swollen.
“The impact from the concrete,” Ali said.
It took a while for the family to sort out what happened to his father.
“My mom called me from work,” said Ali. “She told me, 'Hey, what’s going on in Bay Ridge?' So I looked into it. I’m like, 'Oh, there’s this guy in a U-Haul going on a rampage.'”
The family lives in the area so the mother and son started to call around to make sure everyone was safe.
“We’re calling everybody checking up but he wasn’t answering,” said Ali. “My mom found out from another relative that he was the one in the blue jacket.”
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