The parents of a Central Nyack teen killed on his e-scooter by a hit-and-run driver are speaking exclusively with News 12 about their loss and hopes for justice in their son’s case. 

Dariel Rivera, 18, was headed to work at FedEx on Route 303 in Nyack for a 4 a.m. shift on July 14 and operating an e-scooter when he was fatally struck twice – first by a hit-and-run driver and then by a second vehicle. 

His parents, Samuel and Maria, say the teen had his learner’s permit and was working toward getting his driver’s license when he was killed. 

“We were just trying to do the right thing and he was trying to do the right thing,” said Samuel Rivera. “Our lives are turned upside down because there’s somebody out there that didn’t think like that.” 

Clarkstown police say Rivera was first struck by 35-year-old Patrick Sharkey who left the scene and later turned himself in. Authorities say Sharkey was driving with a revoked license and without a required interlock device. 

News 12 obtained a copy of the accident report that shows Rivera was hit by a second car after Sharkey allegedly failed to stop. According to the police document, the second driver, who stayed on the scene, witnessed Sharkey strike something but didn’t realize it was a person, or that Rivera was in the road. 

“We cannot understand that our son is gone,” said Maria Rivera. 

The teen’s parents say they’re hoping for justice while the charges against Sharkey remain pending.  

“We are just hoping Dariel will get some sort of justification,” said the teen’s father. “He was a young person with a beautiful, bright future ahead of him that we will never know about now.” 

The second driver who struck Rivera was not charged. Sharkey is out on $50,000 bail while facing several felony and misdemeanor charges, including leaving the scene of an accident and driving without a license.  

Rivera’s family held a celebration of life for the teen on Aug. 17 for what would have been Dariel's 19th birthday. 

“This loss has turned my family upside down. Our lives are different, our plans are different. It’s like a never-ending, bad cloud looming over us here.”