Police: Driver Charged After Hitting Maine 7-Year-Old in Crosswalk

A Lewiston, Maine, man is facing charges following an incident that occurred on Tuesday morning.

WGME said that area officials responded to Minot Avenue at about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday in front of the Fairview School following reports of a vehicle hitting a pedestrian.

When police and fire crews arrived on the scene they found that a 7-year-old boy was struck by a vehicle while he had been crossing the street using a crosswalk which is inside the school zone, the news station reported.

Additionally, police said that there was a crossing guard at the location that was holding up a stop sign to warn oncoming traffic that the crosswalk was in use at that moment, according to WGME.

The news station went on to report that the driver of the car, Alberto Nafoia, 27 of Lewiston, said he did not see the crossing guard's stop sign.

Fortunately, the young child only suffered minor injuries after the collision and was able to be treated on the scene, WGME said. The news station added that as an extra precaution, first responders took him to an area hospital for added observation.

Following an investigation by responding officers, Nafoia was charged with driving to endanger and was also given a traffic ticket for failing to obey a crossing guard, according to WGME.

With school and fall sports back in full swing, we remind all area drivers to be paying extra attention when traveling through school zones, particularly during the morning and afternoon times as many children walk and/or bike to and from school.