Elderly driver, 72, is arrested for brutal hit-and-run crash that killed ex-Nickelodeon star Kianna Underwood

A person allegedly involved in the hit-and-run death of former child star Kianna Underwood has been arrested.

According to court records viewed by the Daily Mail, 72-year-old Michael Griffiths was arrested on Tuesday by the New York City Police Department (NYPD).

Underwood was hit by two vehicles in Brooklyn's Brownsville neighborhood shortly before 7am on January 16 of this year.

The former All That star was pronounced dead at the scene. She was 33. 

Griffiths, who was charged with leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death and leaving the scene of an accident with injury, has his next court appearance scheduled for October 27. 

In a January interview with the New York Daily News, Griffiths admitted that he was driving the Ford SUV that first hit Underwood, but he claimed he 'did nothing wrong.'

The Daily Mail has reached out to Griffiths's attorney, the NYPD and the Kings County District Attorney's Office for comment but has not yet received a response. 

The New York Post previously reported Griffiths's arrest.

He was driving a 2021 Ford Explorer that allegedly hit Underwood after she crossed without waiting for the walk light at the corner of Watkins Street and Pitkin Avenue.

The Explorer was seen in security footage obtained by the Post as it crossed over the double yellow lines as it passed a car that was stopped in the middle of the lane.

The SUV then reportedly hit Underwood, with the impact flinging her body across the intersection.

A police source said that a second car then hit Underwood and dragged her 'several hundred feet,' or more than two blocks, according to the Post.

The former child star was pronounced dead at the scene after suffering catastrophic injuries.

It's unclear what progress police have made in tracking down the driver of the second vehicle that hit Underwood.

Back in January, Griffiths told authorities that he was getting a lawyer and would not be answering any questions about the fatal hit-and-run. 

Authorities seized his vehicle and were said to be reviewing surveillance footage to determine if Griffiths, who had not been identified by name at the time, was the one driving when Underwood was run over.

Records obtained by the Daily News showed that Griffiths's vehicle in the past had been ticketed for 41 violations, 25 of which were for speeding.

Shocking surveillance footage from the scene obtained by CBS News showed Underwood leaving a doorstep in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn on Friday morning and waiting at the intersection of Pitkin Avenue and Mother Gaston Boulevard.

She reportedly did not wait for the walk symbol when she was struck by the SUV driver, who was heading west on Pitkin Avenue and had a green light, but veered across double yellow lines to pass another vehicle, according to the Daily News.

The driver could be seen in the surveillance footage going against traffic and striking Underwood before it disappears from the video frame without slowing down.

Underwood was then struck moments later by the driver of a black and gray sedan, which dragged her body for more than two blocks before it came loose near the intersection of Pitkin and Osborn Streets.

That driver also failed to stop, but several people appeared not to notice the body until a few witnesses reached for their phones.

Griffiths claimed to the New York Daily News that he had stopped and tried to flag down other drivers to help when he saw a second car strike her and drag her body.

However, Griffiths then left the scene, which he claimed was because he needed to take medication, and he said he 'felt like I was going to faint when the incident happened.'

The former child actress 'sustained severe trauma to the head and body,' police said, and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

One day later, her devastated father, Anthony Underwood, shared a heartbreaking Facebook post in which he compared his daughter's death to the time he saw a fox get run over in the Catskills Mountains.

'Another driver pulled over and picked the fox up who was still alive and put it on the side of the road,' he recalled. 'All I can think about is did anyone show my baby that same compassion, as someone ran her over like roadkill.'

It now seems that Underwood, who starred in shows like All That and Little Bill, fell on hard times since her time as a child actor.

Two years ago, Angelique Bates, 45, sounded alarms about Underwood, who had been homeless in New York City, and she took to social media to call out their former crew members for not reaching out to her.

In November 2023, she shared an Instagram video and called out Nickelodeon for turning a blind eye. 

'She's one of us, and she needs help, but she's not getting it,' she said in her video before later adding: 'Nobody's speaking on Kianna Underwood.'

She said that the cast members acted like a close-knit family while on TV but appeared to not uphold the same behavior when they were off the set. 

After learning of Underwood's death, Bates shared a clip with the news article headline she read and a throwback clip of the late star on the show. 

She wrote in her caption: 'Y’all have no idea how much this one hurts…Sick to my stomach….So many people failed baby girl.' 

Those who knew Underwood in Brooklyn have described how she would frequently ask for money.

'She would come around and ask for a couple of dollars here and there,' said Andy Sierra, who supervises a store nearby. 

'I used to give a couple of dollars and buy her food. I gave her some clothes and some sneakers last Saturday.'

Speaking of Underwood's untimely death, Sierra said it was a 'tragedy.'

'No human being deserves to die like that.'

Another man in the neighborhood, who refused to give his name, told the Daily News that Underwood's boyfriend informed him of her death. 

He said that her boyfriend was cooking breakfast for Underwood when she left in the morning, adding, 'He was just talking to her and he was begging her to stay inside the house.'

'I’m very devastated, you know, I see her all the time,' he added. 

'She always had good spirits, happy, good energy. It was very sad to hear that it was her.' 

Underwood got her big break on the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series All That for its tenth and last season in 2005, replacing Jamie Lynn Spears.

The show produced several stars, including longtime Saturday Night Live cast member Kenan Thompson and Amanda Bynes. 

Underwood also starred in 23 episodes of Little Bill, and appeared in the film The 24 Hour Woman, starring Patti LuPone.

Additionally, she voiced a character in the animated movie Santa Baby! and dabbled in stage production, touring with the musical Hairspray.