Two Jamaica residents have been indicted by a Queens grand jury on murder charges and other crimes for a drag racing collision that killed a hospital worker in Kew Gardens Hills in November 2020, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
Alamin Ahmed and Mir Fahmid, both 24, were arraigned Thursday before Queens Supreme Court Justice Michael Aloise on a 20-count indictment charging them both with murder in the second degree and a score of other charges. Ahmed is also charged with vehicular manslaughter and operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol. Fahmid is additionally charged with leaving the scene of an incident without reporting and tampering with physical evidence.
According to the charges, in the early morning hours of Nov. 20, 2020, both men attended a party in Brooklyn to celebrate Fahmid’s birthday. After the party, the pair stopped at a gas station on Main Street and Union Turnpike to fill up. Then, the two men were seen on video surveillance posting up side by side at a red light and when the signal turned green, they allegedly accelerated quickly racing down Union Turnpike.
Katz said that both men allegedly sped through two solid red lights and as they were rapidly approaching Parson Boulevard, Daniel Crawford was driving southbound on Parsons Boulevard heading to work at Queens Hospital Center in Jamaica. Just as Crawford entered the intersection, he was struck by both the silver Mercedes Benz Ahmed was allegedly driving and the red Honda Accord defendant Famid allegedly drove.
According to the charges, the two cars — both going more than 90 miles per hour — T-boned Crawford’s Toyota. The 52-year-old Jamaica resident suffered an internal decapitation and was rushed to the same hospital where he worked and was pronounced dead.
Katz said Ahmed’s vehicle was disabled in the collision and he was taken into custody at the scene of the crash. At that time, Ahmed allegedly showed signs of intoxication and a test administered at the crash site allegedly showed Ahmed’s blood-alcohol level was .094, above the legal limit. Fahmid is accused of fleeing the scene, according to the DA.
“You cannot use our city streets as if they were the Daytona Speedway or get behind the wheel of a car when intoxicated,” Katz said. “As alleged, the defendants were drag racing in Kew Gardens Hills early in the morning on Nov. 20, 2020, when they crashed into and killed another driver who was on his way to work at a nearby hospital. One of the defendants was allegedly intoxicated as he drove. The defendants now face very serious charges and will be held to account for their alleged actions.”
Justice Aloise ordered the defendants to return to court on March 22. If convicted, Ahmed and Fahmid face up to 25 years to life in prison.
