Lindenhurst man pleads guilty after prosecutors say he barreled through Freeport at triple the speed limit
MINEOLA, NY – A drunk driver tore down a Freeport road at 106 mph before blowing through a red light and slamming into a car driven by a 55-year-old man heading home from work, killing him in a crash that ended with one vehicle crushed and the other engulfed in flames, prosecutors said.
Bryan Mizhirumbay, 24, of Lindenhurst, pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated vehicular homicide, second-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault and aggravated driving while intoxicated per se, according to Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly.
The Sept. 3 crash killed Craig White, 55, who was returning home from his job at AHRC Nassau in Freeport.
Mizhirumbay is expected to receive a sentence of seven to 15 years in prison when he returns to court Nov. 2 before Judge Caryn Fink.
The Nassau County District Attorney’s Office recommended a sentence of seven to 18 years.
Prosecutors said Mizhirumbay had spent the evening drinking while working and serving customers at a local restaurant before getting behind the wheel.
At approximately 11:07 p.m., White was driving north on South Long Beach Avenue and traveling through its intersection with Atlantic Avenue.
Mizhirumbay was driving east on Atlantic Avenue.
As he approached the intersection, prosecutors said Mizhirumbay reached speeds as high as 106 mph in a 35-mph zone.
He failed to stop at a red light and slammed into the driver’s side of White’s vehicle, according to the district attorney’s office.
The impact sent both vehicles across the intersection and the westbound lanes of Atlantic Avenue.
White’s vehicle crashed through a fence on the property of Atlantic Nursery.
Mizhirumbay’s vehicle came to rest on the westbound shoulder and burst into flames.
White was found unconscious and trapped in the driver’s seat. Prosecutors said the force of the collision had pushed the driver’s seat into the passenger compartment.
He was transported to Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Mizhirumbay was taken to Nassau University Medical Center for treatment.
A blood sample taken approximately one hour after the crash showed Mizhirumbay had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.18%, according to prosecutors.
That was more than twice New York’s 0.08% legal limit for drivers 21 and older.
Investigators also examined the vehicle’s event data recorder.
The data showed Mizhirumbay was traveling approximately 106 mph three seconds before impact, prosecutors said.
Despite intermittent braking, his vehicle was still traveling approximately 90 mph when it struck White’s car.
Mizhirumbay surrendered to the Nassau County Police Department Homicide Squad on Jan. 20.
His guilty plea came nearly a year after the crash.
Key Points
- Bryan Mizhirumbay, 24, pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide and other charges in the crash that killed Craig White, 55.
- Prosecutors said Mizhirumbay reached approximately 106 mph in a 35-mph zone before running a red light and striking White’s vehicle at approximately 90 mph.
- Mizhirumbay’s blood alcohol concentration measured 0.18% about an hour after the crash, and he is expected to receive seven to 15 years in prison.
