The teen accused of punching an Italian tourist to death in the Bronx earlier this weekend has turned himself in. Brownie Lopez-Hidalgo, 19, surrendered to police at the 48th Precinct in the Bronx around 5 p.m. Sunday. He has been charged with assault in the death of 37-year-old tourist Oliver D’Orio.
D'Orio, a Switzerland resident who was visiting his girlfriend in the city for the last 10 days, was punched in the face around 12:10 a.m. Saturday in front of Guerrero Bodega on Washington Avenue and East 184th Street. He hit his head on the sidewalk, immediately lost consciousness, and later died.
Witnesses say that D'Orio appeared to be drunk that night (and was carrying a banana), approaching various customers at the bodgea—including the suspect—asking for alcohol when the incident happened: "[D'Orio] was pestering [the suspect], saying, 'Buy me a beer, buy me a beer,'" bodega clerk Julio Minier told the Post. "They came out onto the street and when the fight started he punched him with an open hand. The man went down. I knew he was dead when he hit the ground."
