{"id":168516,"date":"2026-03-19T20:00:42","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T20:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/168516\/"},"modified":"2026-03-19T20:00:42","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T20:00:42","slug":"queens-man-struck-by-hit-run-driver-while-walking-dogs-mourns-pet-killed-in-crash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/168516\/","title":{"rendered":"Queens man struck by hit-run driver while walking dogs mourns pet killed in crash"},"content":{"rendered":"

.A man badly injured by a hit-and-run driver<\/a> while walking his dogs in Queens is grieving the death of one of his beloved pets in the crash \u2014 while marveling at the miraculous survival of the other.<\/p>\n

Francisco Disla, 59, wasn\u2019t sure he was going to make it himself when he came to consciousness next to his dead dog in the intersection outside his home in South Richmond Hill after being struck on Feb. 21. He is still struggling to recover a month later.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started crying for help and no one came,\u201d Disla said. \u201cAfter 20 minutes, two guys came over and asked if I was drunk. I told them, \u2018Someone hit me and killed my dog. Call 911.’\u201d<\/p>\n

On Sunday, cops arrested Javid Vythilingum, 20, charging him with leaving the scene of an accident and leaving the scene of injury to animals.<\/p>\n

When an unconscious Disla came to after the crash, he saw Benji, his 6-year-old Yorkie, lying dead beside him, and Max, his 1-year-old Pomeranian, nowhere to be found. Max, still attached to his leash, flew through the air when struck, surveillance video obtained by the Daily News shows.<\/p>\n

While medics rushed Disla to a local hospital, where he was treated for a concussion and a brain hemorrhage, an injured Max was finding his way back to Disla\u2019s apartment, where he showed up a few hours later.<\/p>\n

The victim was crossing 101st Ave. when the Jeep driver turned right on 118th St. and plowed into the victim and his Yorkie in the crosswalk, the video shows. Disla regularly takes his dogs out late for a final walk before going to bed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had the light and I looked both ways multiple times to see if a car was coming,\u201d Disla said. \u201cWhen I got to the middle of the street, I got hit.\u201d<\/p>\n

The driver fled the scene, leaving Disla unconscious in the crosswalk.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in the middle of the street,\u201d said Disla. \u201cI woke up and I saw Benji lying down and I wanted to cry so bad.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"FranciscoFrancisco Disla is pictured walking his dogs moments before being struck by a vehicle in Queens. (Obtained by Daily News)<\/p>\n

Max, meanwhile, had pulled loose from his collar and ran off but eventually showed up back home.<\/p>\n

\u201cMax came to the doorstep. He seemed startled and scared, like a deer in headlights,\u201d said Disla\u2019s 23-year-old Adrian Disla. \u201cIt took a few minutes to convince him that he knows me. I jingled keys and just made sure Max recognized me and that he was with family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Following his arrest, Vythilingum told police he fled the scene because he \u201cgot nervous\u201d and that, instead of calling 911, he went to Popeye\u2019s after the crash, according to the criminal complaint against him.<\/p>\n

Before the crash, Vythilingum and two friends parked their vehicle near that intersection and went into a nightclub called Zen about midnight, prosecutors said.<\/p>\n

The trio stayed at the nightclub until about 2:45 a.m., when they were seen piling back into the Jeep and driving off, almost immediately crashing into the victim and his dogs. Vythilingum was caught on camera getting behind the wheel moments before the crash, prosecutors said.<\/p>\n

Weeks after the crash, Disla said he continues to suffer from debilitating back pain and a constant ringing in his ears. He now spends his days lying in the dark to avoid any light, which causes him to become dizzy, and takes nine different medications.<\/p>\n

Complicating Disla\u2019s recovery iis his prostate cancer treatment. Because of the crash, Disla said he had to delay radiation therapy as his body heals. But none of that compares to the loss of his beloved dog.<\/p>\n

\u201cBenji was so close to me,\u201d said Disla. \u201cI felt he knew I had something. When I was diagnosed with cancer, Benji would always be next to me. I bought the dog for my wife, but he became close to me. I took him out. I fed him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another of Disla\u2019s sons, who asked not to be named, said the suspect\u2019s Popeye\u2019s visit was particulary galling.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you hit somebody, the last thing you think of is food,\u201d he said. \u201cIf it wasn\u2019t for random people (who came to his aid), my dad could have bled out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Disla works as the superintendent at his and multiple other buildings in the area, often helping his neighbors shovel and making various repairs for them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI used to sweep and do work around here and help everyone,\u201d Disla said. \u201cI can\u2019t do that now. I have to take it easy,\u201d<\/p>\n

The charges against Vythilingum are not bail eligible and a Queens Criminal Court<\/a> judge ordered him released during his arraignment on Monday. He\u2019s due back in court on March 20.<\/p>\n

Attempts to reach his\u00a0Legal Aid<\/a> attorney were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":".A man badly injured by a hit-and-run driver while walking his dogs in Queens is grieving the death…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":168517,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[262,263,266,85,267,9,24,264,12,63,261,122,124,123,265],"class_list":["post-168516","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-city","tag-county","tag-crime-and-public-safety","tag-latest-headlines","tag-local-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-county","tag-news","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-crime","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news","tag-sub-county-region"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168516","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=168516"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168516\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/168517"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=168516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=168516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=168516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}