A College Point man pleaded guilty to manslaughter and DUI charges last week for his role in a crash on Long Island that left an Uber driver dead in April 2016.
According to Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas, Bonifacio Enriquez, 36, pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter and operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol. He is due back for sentencing on Sept. 12 and faces a recommended three to nine years in prison.
On April 7, 2016 at 2:05 a.m., Roohul Ameen, 43, was driving a black 2013 Toyota Camry eastbound in the HOV lane on the Long Island Expressway near exit 41 when his front bumper became dislodged, prosecutors said. Ameen then stopped his car, put on his hazard lights, exited and attempted to reattach the bumper.
Enriquez, who was intoxicated with a BAC calculated to be at least .12, drove eastbound in the HOV lane in a gold 2010 Ford Escape with two passengers. Traveling at 69 mph, he approached the victim’s vehicle, which was disabled on a straight section of the roadway.
Enriquez tried to pass between the victim’s vehicle and the concrete median when the Ford Escape struck the vehicle on the driver’s side panel, continued forward and struck the victim, who was thrown into the left lane and killed.
Enriquez was later arrested by members of the Nassau County Police Department and arraigned at Nassau University Medical Center.
“A motorist tending to a disabled vehicle should not have to fear for his life because of the intoxication and recklessness of a fellow driver,” Singas said. “I am saddened by the senseless and preventable death of Roohul Ameen who was an innocent and hard-working father driving home to his family, and I hope that this guilty plea will provide some small comfort to his loved ones.”
