Friends of a Columbia University student who was critically injured by a hit-and-run driver last week have launched a GoFundMe campaign to help him with his medical bills.
Shariq Jumani, 19, was struck by a driver while crossing at the intersection of Riverside Drive and 115th Street at around 12:30 a.m. on Monday, June 5th. Jumani, a rising sophomore at Columbia, suffered a number of serious injuries, including severe brain trauma, broken legs, and internal bleeding. He is currently being treated at St. Luke's hospital, where he's already undergone a number of surgeries, including open-brain surgery.
Doctors say Jumani will make a full recovery, but friends say his medical expenses thus far total about $196,000, and future rehabilitation and surgeries—including the reconstruction of part of his fractured skull—are expected to be costly. Jumani's friends and brother, Shehryar Jumani, are hoping to rack up at least $500,000 via the GoFundMe to help alleviated some of those costs.
"This kind of freak accident can happen to anyone, and it is humbling to think how someone’s life, perfectly normal and full of aspirations in one moment, can be completely upturned in the next," the GoFundMe page reads. "But Shariq deserves another chance at fulfilling his dreams, another chance at excelling in his academics and contributing to his university community, and another chance of continuing to make his parents proud." The fund had raised over $144K as of Monday morning.
Last week police arrested Brayard Arno, 28, and charged him with leaving the scene of an accident and aggravated unlicensed operation. Arno, a New Jersey resident, has had his license suspended three times in New York; he turned himself in early last Tuesday morning.
