The NYPD claims that the police cruiser that struck and seriously injured a 69-year-old homeless man on the Upper West Side yesterday was traveling with the green light and had its lights and sirens on. This narrative is contradicted by several eyewitness accounts. "I saw the accident, did not see the lights on the police car before the accident, and definitely did not hear the siren until after the accident either," bystander Justin Reich tells us, echoing the words of other witnesses in the Post.

BREAKING: A man was seriously injured when he was struck by a cop car on the Upper West Side http://t.co/JEaRpXKcj2 pic.twitter.com/ovpilOh6Q3 — NBC New York (@NBCNewYork) April 13, 2014

Reich, who said he was walking on the east side on Broadway between 78th and 79th, saw the northbound police vehicle hit the man, "and heard a short 'bloop' from the cruiser after that."

An NYPD spokesman said that the police vehicle had its lights on, "and was intermittently using its siren to pull over a vehicle," when it struck the man, who was jaywalking.

Reich says he did not look at the light when the incident happened, "but I was talking to some other people who had gathered around and they said the pedestrian had the right of way."

Witness Fran Kaback told the Post, “The cop tried to divert away from him but he couldn’t swerve enough and he hit the poor guy. Everyone I talked to said that the man had the right of way.”

The victim, whom the NYPD declined to identify, was transported to St. Luke's. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer wrote on her Facebook page, "Pedestrian hit by a car on 78 Street and Broadway NY NY is going to be OK. That is my understanding. Thank goodness."

The spokesman added that no criminality is suspected, and the investigation is ongoing.

Last February, 24-year-old Ryo Oyamada was struck and killed by a speeding NYPD cruiser in Queensbridge; the department claims that the cruiser had its lights and sirens blazing, but eyewitnesses disagree. Oyamada's family has since sued the city.

In July, an NYPD van struck and killed 61-year-old Spanish teacher Felix Coss as he walked through a Williamsburg crosswalk. The driver of the vehicle was not charged or cited for any crime.