Moment man is arrested after 'ploughing into pedestrians' in New York's Times Square

This is the moment a man was arrested after a speeding car ploughed into pedestrians in New York’s Times Square.

The horrific scenes unfolded at the Midtown Manhattan tourist site at about midday local time on Thursday, leaving an 18-year-old woman dead and 22 people injured, four critically.

Video footage posted online shows a man being escorted by two NYPD officers in front of terrified onlookers.

The officers bundle the man into a large police car before the video pans away to show the mangled red Honda which he had been driving, sitting atop a bollard.

New York: Times Square Car Crash

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A large number of emergency service vehicles and police officers can also be seen, as a police cordon was put in place.

The New York Police Department confirmed that a 26-year-old man, named locally as Richard Rojas from the Bronx district, was detained by police at the scene.

He reportedly has previous convictions for driving under the influence and is being tested for alcohol and drug levels in custody.

He was arrested twice - in 2008 and 2015 - for drink-driving offences.

The incident is not believed to be connected to terrorism and tweeted that it was an "isolated incident", police said.

Witnesses on social media described how the motorist drove against traffic - down the wrong side of the road - and onto the pavement.

Actor Josh Silverman was in Times Square when the incident happened.

He told the Standard: “People suddenly started screaming and running. I saw a woman across the street, lying in the middle of an intersection, injured.

“People immediately came to her aid. But most people weren't looking at her, they were looking further down the street.

“I saw a second injured person across the street, on the sidewalk, surrounded by people helping. And then I saw the car, smoking, heavily damaged, propped up on two wheels.

“By this point cops and paramedics were swarming into Times Square.

“Then I saw the suspect, handcuffed, shirtless, laying on the ground up against the wall, facing the wall, surrounded by cops.”

The car crashed into a pole and came to a rest at 45th Street and Broadway.

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