Philadelphia Police have identified the South Philadelphia man who died after his SUV careened off a pier on Penn's Landing last evening.
Marc Oliverio, 25, was speeding his black 2011 Volkswagen Tiguan down an off-ramp on Chestnut Street around 6 p.m. on Monday when the car left the road, crossed a small grass patch, crashed through a metal fence and plunged into the Delaware River, police said.
Witnesses jumped into the water to try and rescue Oliverio, but they could not free him from the car. It took Philadelphia Police Marine Unit officers and firefighters 15 minutes to get him back to the surface.
Oliverio was taken to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and later pronounced dead, police said.
Investigators are unsure what led the man to drive into the river, but shortly before the crash he was involved in a hit-and-run at 4th and Arch Streets. Police say Oliverio ran a red light and hit a silver 2004 Honda Accord before speeding off.
The driver of that car, a 22-year-old woman, was taken to the hospital with minor neck and back pain, police said. Her passenger was not injured.
The man's Facebook page, which was filled with rest in peace messages, lists his birthday as July 25 -- just four days ago.
