Driver Charged in Gramercy Crash That Killed Abdulhekim Esiyok
A Few Months
Mahbub Ali allegedly struck Abdulhekim Esiyok at Third Avenue and East 21st Street on June 4, 2023, in a crash that killed Esiyok and injured four others, according to prosecutors and the official record.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
Mahbub Ali was driving north on Third Avenue on June 4, 2023, when he allegedly struck Abdulhekim Esiyok near East 21st Street. Esiyok, 23, died, and four other people were injured. The official record identifies Esiyok as a bicyclist, and an account of the later indictment says he was riding a bicycle. Earlier police accounts described him as a pedestrian in a crosswalk. Those accounts also differ on how the other people were injured. Prosecutors alleged Ali had been drinking before driving; he was later indicted on charges including aggravated vehicular homicide, manslaughter and driving while intoxicated. Esiyok had recently arrived from Turkey and hoped to support his family through work in New York.
Accounts differ on the fatal encounter
The official record identifies Esiyok, 23, as a bicyclist who died and records injuries to another cyclist, two pedestrians and a motorist. An account of Ali's indictment says Esiyok was riding a bicycle when Ali struck him. Earlier reports citing police instead described Esiyok as a pedestrian crossing Third Avenue.
The reports also differ on what happened next. Early police accounts said Ali hit another e-bike rider and two pedestrians before reaching a parked vehicle. The later indictment account said the other rider was struck after Ali's sedan recoiled and that debris injured the pedestrians.
Third Avenue at East 21st Street
The crash happened at Third Avenue and East 21st Street in Manhattan. The intersection matters to the differing accounts: early police reports placed Esiyok in its marked crosswalk, while the later indictment account said Ali struck him as he rode a bicycle there.
Esiyok had come to New York to support his family
Esiyok had recently arrived from Agri in eastern Turkey. Friends said he searched for steady work in New York and hoped to send money to his parents and eventually start a family of his own. A spokesperson for his family said he had found work as a delivery bicyclist.
His parents awaited the return of his body to Turkey. A friend said a fundraiser helped pay for its transport and Esiyok's funeral.
Prosecutors alleged drinking and speeding
Prosecutors alleged that Ali drank throughout the day before driving. The official record cites alcohol involvement and unsafe speed as contributing factors for his sedan. In August, prosecutors announced an indictment charging Ali with aggravated vehicular homicide, second-degree manslaughter, assault, reckless endangerment and driving while intoxicated, among other counts.