An elderly woman in a pink tracksuit crashed her car through the window of a Brighton Beach fried chicken restaurant Friday, leaving a man who was eating there seriously injured.
The woman, who identified herself only as Sveta, was cruising in her black Honda CRV around 10:45 a.m. when she suddenly lost control and slammed into Palace Fried Chicken on Brighton Beach Avenue near Beach 6th Street, cops and witnesses said.
“My brakes malfunctioned. There was something wrong with the car,” Sveta, who appeared uninjured, said after lighting up a cigarette. She refused to answer any more questions.
An elderly man who was eating at the restaurant was struck by the car and injured.
“I was sitting at a table and waiting, and then…,” the man, who gave his name as Bakat, told The Post before being taken away by paramedics.
“[I’m] not well. My leg hurts, it’s broken. My head hurts.”
Sveta claims her black Honda CRV’s brakes malfunctioned before driving into the fried chicken restaurant. Brigitte Stelzer
Sveta’s vehicle smashed the restaurant’s entrance and hit the counter. Brigitte Stelzer
An elderly woman named Sveta drove into Palace Fried Chicken in Brighton Beach. Brigitte Stelzer
Bakat was reportedly eating when Sveta’s black Honda CRV blasted through the restaurant. Brigitte StelzerHe was taken to Lutheran Hospital in serious condition, the FDNY said.
Ahmad Arifee, the owner of the restaurant, told The Post he has several businesses and has “never experienced anything like that.”
“You hear about it, but everybody has a first, I guess,” Arifee said.
“I saw her coming in, I saw the car coming in. It happened too quick.”
Firefighters investigate the scene of the car accident while Sveta exits her car. Brigitte Stelzer
Bakat claimed his leg was “broken” after the car crash. Brigitte Stelzer
The injured customer, Bakat, appears to be in severe pain after being hit. Brigitte StelzerAdditional reporting by Craig McCarthy
