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Boy Killed By Truck In East Harlem Laid To Rest

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - The little boy killed by a tractor-trailer while crossing the street near his East Harlem school last week has been laid to rest.

A funeral was held Sunday morning for 6-year-old Amar Diarrassouba, who was fatally struck by a truck on Thursday.

The incident happened around 8 a.m. at the intersection of First Avenue and East 117th Street.  Diarrassouba was walking to school with his 9-year-old brother when he was struck. They were in the First Avenue crosswalk when he was hit by the truck as it turned from East 117th Street, police said.

Crossing guard Flavia Roman, 55, checked in by phone Thursday morning, telling her precinct youth officer that she was at the intersection of First Avenue and East 117th Street in East Harlem. But police said she was not at her post at the time of the accident.

Roman told police she stepped away for an emergency bathroom break, but sources told CBS 2 that she never showed up for work. Her whereabouts are under investigation.

Roman was suspended without pay for 30 days and criminal charges are still possible.

The truck driver was issued a ticket for failing to yield to a pedestrian and failing to use due care.

Meanwhile, the company that owns the tractor-trailer said they have launched an internal investigation into the accident.

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