Ozone Park man jailed for fatal crash

A 20-year-old Ozone Park man was arrested for criminally negligent homicide, after he lost control of his car on the Grand Central Parkway in Jamaica Estates, and his passenger was ejected from the wreck and killed.
According to police, Armish Singh of 88-11 Pitkin Avenue was traveling east on the highway within the confines of the 107th Precinct, at approximately 1:30 a.m. on Monday, December 15, when he lost control of his 2005 Nissan Altima. The car reportedly spun wildly and flipped over.
A passenger, identified by a spokesperson for Queens DA Richard A. Brown as Tariq Aslim, reportedly of Queens Village, was ejected from the vehicle, and died instantly.
Aslim, who turned 18 on November 21, was reportedly not wearing a seat belt.
According to reports, when Singh was finally freed from the wreck, he “reeked of alcohol” and suffered only minor injuries.
He reportedly refused to take a Breathalyzer test and was uncooperative with investigators. Singh was arrested at the scene, and remains in police custody awaiting arraignment as of press time.
If convicted of the homicide, Singh would face four years in prison.
However a spokesperson for DA Brown said that the investigation is continuing, and additional charges could be added or the homicide charge upgraded.
Under New York State law, a person operating a motor vehicle while having a blood alcohol level of .08 percent (driving while intoxicated) causing a death can be charged with second-degree Vehicular Manslaughter, punishable by 7 years in prison.
At .18 percent blood alcohol (aggravated driving while intoxicated) the crime becomes first-degree and the penalty jumps to 15 years.
The law also states that a driver’s license conveys implied consent to being tested for alcohol under certain circumstances, including an accident.
“Young people think it’s cool to drink and drive,” Brown’s spokesperson said.
“It isn’t.”