Mahbub Ali was indicted after a fatal Gramercy crash that injured four people.
A Few Months
Mahbub Ali was indicted on aggravated vehicular homicide and other charges after a June 4 crash at Third Avenue and East 21st Street that the official record says killed one person and injured four.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
Prosecutors alleged Ali had been drinking through the day before the June 4 crash at Third Avenue and East 21st Street; the official record gives the time as 7:28 p.m. and counts one death and four injuries. June police reports described Esiyok as a 23-year-old pedestrian, while August coverage called him a 22-year-old cyclist; accounts also differ on the crash sequence.
Reports differ on the victim and the crash sequence.
The official record places the crash at 7:28 p.m. on June 4, 2023, and counts one person killed and four injured: two pedestrians, one cyclist and one motorist. It lists the person killed as a 23-year-old male bicyclist and links him to an e-bike.
The New York Post identified the person who died as Abdulhekim Esiyok. Its June police account described him as a 23-year-old pedestrian crossing in a marked crosswalk; an August amNewYork report described Esiyok as a 22-year-old cyclist riding a bicycle.
The Post's June account said Ali first hit Esiyok in the crosswalk, then hit an 18-year-old e-bike rider turning onto Third Avenue, drove onto the sidewalk and hit two pedestrians before hitting a parked vehicle. It described that vehicle as an unoccupied 2013 Chevrolet Express van.
AmNewYork's August account of the indictment gave a different sequence: it said Ali allegedly hit Esiyok while he was riding a bicycle, then drove onto the sidewalk and hit a light pole and an NYPD van. That report said the e-bike rider was knocked from his bicycle during the sedan's recoil and debris injured two pedestrians.
The official record classifies an unoccupied 2013 Chevrolet as a station wagon or SUV; the Post called the parked vehicle a Chevrolet Express van, while amNewYork referred to an NYPD van.
At Third Avenue and East 21st Street.
The official record places the crash at Third Avenue and East 21st Street in Manhattan. The Post described the intersection as being in Gramercy Park, near the former NYPD police academy building on East 20th Street, then designated as a migrant shelter.
Esiyok came to New York seeking work.
The Post reported that Esiyok was from Agri in eastern Turkey and had come to New York hoping to find work and support his family. A family spokesperson told WPIX, as reported by the Post, that Esiyok had recently found work as a delivery bicyclist. Friends said he liked sports and hoped to build a future for himself.
The Post reported that Esiyok's parents were unable to travel to New York after their visa applications were denied. Friends raised more than $25,000 for the return of his body and funeral costs, and burial was planned in Agri.
The crash record lists alcohol and speed factors.
The official record lists alcohol involvement and unsafe speed as contributing factors for the sedan's driver. Prosecutors alleged Ali had been drinking through the day before driving and said his blood alcohol concentration was .158 two hours after the crash; those statements were allegations.
Ali faced charges and an indictment.
Police said Ali faced vehicular manslaughter, DWI and assault charges in June. In August, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced an indictment that included aggravated vehicular homicide, second-degree manslaughter, assault, reckless endangerment and DWI. These are charges, not findings of guilt.
Reports differ on where the person who died succumbed to his injuries. The Daily News's first report said a man died at the scene; the Post and amNewYork later reported that Esiyok was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he died.