Hit-and-run driver who mowed down mom-to-be on way home from Beyoncé concert nabbed in NYC: officials
The hit-and-run driver who cops say mowed down and dragged a pregnant woman heading home from a Beyoncé concert was busted on murder charges, cops said Wednesday — as the victim's grieving husband slammed the motorist as a 'coward' and a 'monster.'
Chaquasia Pigford, 28, faces a laundry list of charges — including second-degree murder, manslaughter, reckless driving, driving without a license, and leaving the scene of a deadly accident — for allegedly ramming into 32-year-old Tiffany Cifuni the night of May 24 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, cops said.
Pigford was ordered held without bail by Judge Dena E. Douglas during her Wednesday afternoon arraignment, attended by about 10 relatives of the slain mom-to-be, including her husband, James Cifuni.
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7 Chaquasia Pigford, 28, was charged with murder in the hit-and-run that killed 32-year-old mom-to-be Tiffany Cifuni, cops said.
Paul Martinka
'She's a coward,' the tearful husband could be heard saying during the proceedings. 'She's a monster.'
Tiffany's father-in-law, Nick Cifuni, a private practice lawyer who previously worked for the NYPD, told reporters the family is 'happy today happened.'
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'We have been reeling from the day [Tiffany] was killed,' he said. 'We will not rest until it's over and we get justice for Tiffany.
'I don't want to say anything to disrupt the evidence of the case.'
7 Pigford allegedly struck Cifuni from behind after the two women's cars got into a fender-bender in Bedford-Stuyvesant, cops said.
Paul Martinka, cell 718.810.5185
Cifuni — who prosecutors say was 12 weeks pregnant — was on her way home from the Beyoncé concert at MetLife Stadium the night she was killed, her heartbroken in-laws told WABC at the time of the tragedy.
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While en route, Cifuni, who was driving a 2021 Toyota 4Runner, was rear-ended by Pigford, who was driving a stolen 2016 Chevy Trax on Lewis Avenue, cops and prosecutors said.
Cifuni followed Pigford for about two blocks before the Chevy driver finally stopped at Van Buren Street and Marcus Garvey Boulevard, Assistant District Attorney Tara Kelly said.
7 Cifuni was on her way home from a Beyoncé concert when she was rear-ended by Pigford, prosecutors said.
Facebook / Tiffany Rivera
Cifuni got out of her car and walked up to Pigford's ride — but Pigford 'refused to roll down her window or speak with Tiffany,' Kelly said.
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'At that point, the defendant first lightly pressed the gas, causing the vehicle to briefly touch Mrs. Cifuni,' Kelly recounted. 'Tiffany jumped backwards and placed her hands on the hood.'
'When a passerby was walking down the street, Tiffany yelled, asking him to take a photo of the defendant's license plate,' she added. 'At that moment, the defendant floored the gas, instantly striking Tiffany, causing her body to become lodged beneath the vehicle.'
7 Cifuni was in her first trimester at the time of her death.
Facebook / Barbara Cifuni
Pigford then made an illegal right turn into oncoming traffic on Marcus Garvey Boulevard, Kelly said.
It wasn't until Pigford drove over a manhole that Cifuni's body was dislodged, according to the prosecutor.
But the driver's rampage wasn't done — police said the Chevy struck a parked Volkswagen SUV while trying to get away, and then slammed into a 2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee with a 38-year-old woman behind the wheel.
7 Tiffany's husband James Cifuni called Pigford a 'coward' and a 'monster' during the accused hit-and-run driver's first court appearance.
Facebook / Barbara Cifuni
'The only reason the defendant stopped driving was because both of her front tires blew out,' Kelly said. 'She then abandoned the stolen car and fled the scene on foot.'
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The crazed driver then got out and fled on foot, leaving behind the Chevy, which had temporary plates.
Pigford fled to South Carolina, where she has relatives, and was nabbed when she returned to Brooklyn late Tuesday, according to Kelly.
7 Pigford, who was driving a stolen car, denied any responsibility for the deadly hit-and-run.
Diego Luzuriaga/FreedomNewsTV
Cifuni's in-laws previously told WABC that just two weeks before her tragic death, Cifuni had shared the news that she and James, who lived on Long Island, were expecting their first child.
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Before the arraignment, Pigford – who lives less than a mile from the scene – denied any responsibility for the crash as detectives led her out of the 81st Precinct stationhouse.
'It wasn't me, it was the person who owns the car,' she told reporters.
7 Pigford faces a slew of charges and was ordered held without bail during her arraignment.
Diego Luzuriaga/FreedomNewsTV
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Her attorney, John Signoriello, echoed his client's denial in court and tried to press for $10,000 bail because his client has strong community ties, lives with her mother and works as a home health aide.
Pigford, who wore glasses, a navy blue hoodie and black leggings, kept her hood pulled over her head during the proceedings.
Her next court appearance is scheduled for July 30.
Additional reporting by Larry Celona
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