Horrifying moment drug safety mentor, 24, intentionally plows into NYPD officer with her black Lexus - and later yells 'f*** these cops. I wanted to teach him a lesson' as she's arrested
- Sahara Dula, 24, was caught driving down the wrong side of the road before hitting the officer when he approached her
- She told investigators 'I did it on purpose'
- The brazen attack came as NYPD officers were chasing down a group of thieves who were making off with $10,000 of items stolen from a retailer
The driver, Sahara Dula, 24, was charged with a number of crimes including first-degree attempted assault and operating a vehicle while impaired by drugs
Sahara Dula, 24, was caught driving down the wrong side of the road before hitting the officer when he approached her, sending him sprawling over the hood of the car and into the road.
She was taken into custody on Manhattan's Upper East Side on Wednesday, with court papers showing she later admitted: 'I told the cop I wanted to go straight, and he wouldn't move, so I hit him. I did it on purpose.'
Dula was charged with a slew of crimes including first-degree attempted assault and operating a vehicle while impaired by drugs, however questions have been raised over why she was not charged with attempted murder in the blatant attack.
Shocking dashcam footage captured the moment a drug safety mentor rammed her car into an NYPD officer in broad daylight
The driver slammed into the officer, who has not been named, at the same time NYPD officers were responding to a smash-and-grab robbery at a high-end retailer on the Upper East Side.
Several thieves made off with around $10,000 of clothes and expensive items, and fled in a vehicle before abandoning it several blocks away.
The chase led police to close part of the road, and with Dula slowly moving down the wrong side of the road, the officer approached her to order her into the correct lane.
A person can be heard in the dashcam footage yelling for the cop to 'be careful', seconds before Dula slammed on the gas and sent him flying over the bonnet.
Witnesses claimed to the New York Post that Dula, a Brooklyn resident whose lawyer said she mentors kids to stay off drugs, screamed at the officer immediately after: 'F*** these cops - it's a lesson to him and hopefully he doesn't want to be a cop anymore.'
According to her LinkedIn, Dula graduated from New England College in 2022 with a major in criminal justice and communications.
The footage of the incident then saw several other cops rush to the injured officers' aid, while Dula was promptly arrested and put into handcuffs.
Court papers noted that the officer suffered a broken leg and bruising across his body.
Once in custody, Dula reportedly confessed to the vehicular assault 'on purpose'.
The prosecutor sought a $100,000 bail for the 'egregious' attack, but a judge reduced the bail to $25,000. Dula did not immediately make bail.
The moment came as NYPD officers were tracking down a nearby smash-and-grab group of thieves, and Dula tried to drive down the wrong side of the road
The driver then slammed on the gas, sending the officer sprawling over the bonnet of her car and into the road
Stunned witnesses rushed to the officer's help, with Dula allegedly admitting in custody: 'I told the cop I wanted to go straight, and he wouldn't move, so I hit him. I did it on purpose'
The charges brought against Dula have sparked backlash, with some feeling they should have risen to the level of attempted murder.
Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry on Friday said in a statement: 'We’re glad that this individual is being kept in jail, but we don’t understand why she isn’t being charged with attempted murder.
'She tried to run down and kill a New York City police officer. She proudly admits it, but she still isn’t facing the maximum penalty.
'This kind of leniency has led to thousands of police officers being attacked and injured.
'We’re not going to let this case become just another statistic,' he continued. 'We will be following up to ensure that a message is sent — if you attack and injure a New York City police officer, you are going to face the full force of the law.'
Dula reportedly has prior arrests, including a March 2022 charge of criminal mischief from an incident near Brooklyn's Atlantic Terminal Mall where she smashed a property with a metal barrier.
The charges against her in that case were later dropped.
Dula's attorney noted that she mentors kids to help them stay off drugs, and she graduated two years ago with a degree in criminal justice
Dula had also been arrested in New Hampshire, including in 2020 when she failed to stop at an intersection and struck another vehicle. She reportedly tried to flee the scene but was apprehended.
At her Friday court appearance, Dula's Attorney Patricia Wright said she was 'trying to move on from her ties to New Hampshire', which also included a separate arrest for assault at Concord Hospital.
Wright noted that Dula suffers from bipolar disorder, and also runs a company where she mentors kids with music to help them stay off the streets and away from drugs and gangs.
The building manager of her apartment in Brooklyn told the New York Post that she was unfriendly and gruff, and 'smokes a lot of weed.;
'She's like a rude person,' they said. 'Not smiling for nobody. All the time she’s like that.'
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12986577/moment-Dula-intentionally-drives-NYPD-officer.html
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