The allegedly drunk driver who killed a cyclist and injured four others during an evening bender behind the wheel in Gramercy has been indicted on vehicular homicide and manslaughter charges, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced Thursday.
A grand jury voted to serve charges against Queens resident Mahbub Ali, 26, on counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, second-degree manslaughter, assault, reckless endangerment, and driving while intoxicated, among others, in relation to the devastating June 4 crash near Gramercy Park that left 22-year-old Turkish migrant Abdulhekim Esiyok dead and four others injured.
Ali had reportedly been drinking all day on June 4 before getting behind the wheel that evening. He started his bender around noon at Sunday brunch in the Financial District, according to the DA’s office, before hitting up another spot and downing more and more drinks.
At around 7:30 p.m., Ali was allegedly speeding up Third Avenue in a Hyundai sedan with a passenger in the front seat when, at the intersection with 21st Street, he struck Esiyok, who was riding a bicycle. Esiyok was ejected from his bike and flung into the air across the intersection, and sustained severe traumatic injuries when he landed. He was rushed to Bellevue Hospital but could not be saved.
Following that, Ali allegedly crashed his car into the sidewalk, hitting a light pole and an NYPD van.
An 18-year-old e-biker was injured when the car recoiled and struck him from the rear, knocking him from the bicycle, while two pedestrians were struck by debris. One of the pedestrians suffered both a brain injury and a compound leg fracture, which required hospitalization, while the other also fractured their leg. Ali’s passenger had to be removed by first responders from the totaled Hyundai, and received stitches at the hospital.
“Vehicular violence threatens the safety of New Yorkers who have the right to walk and bike without fear,” Bragg said in a statement. “Mahbub Ali allegedly drove while intoxicated, killing a bicyclist and injuring multiple others as they were out on a summer Sunday. My thoughts are with the friends and family of the young man who lost his life, as well as the victims who continue to heal from their injuries.”
Responding police officers contend Ali was standing outside the car after the accident, and admitted to driving while drunk. A breathalyzer test taken over two hours after the crash registered a 0.158 blood-alcohol level, nearly twice the legal limit.
Firefighters also had to work to carefully dismantle two e-bike batteries mangled by the crash, lest they explode and cause an uncontrollable fire.
Following his June arraignment, the DA’s office requested Ali be remanded to custody, but a judge opted to set bail at $300,000 cash, $400,000 insurance bond, or $750,000 partially-secured bond. A Department of Corrections spokesperson confirmed Ali had posted bail and was released.
Ali could face up to 25 years in prison if convicted of the top counts.
The body of Esiyok, who had arrived in New York just months earlier and was looking for work while staying in a migrant shelter, was flown back to his family in Turkey. A GoFundMe raised more than $25,000 for transport and funeral expenses.
Additional reporting by Dean Moses
Read more: Exhibit Opens in SoHo for Multi-Sensory Art
