NEW YORK– In a major development, India has resumed extraditions to the United States after a 17-year gap, sending back an Indian citizen wanted in a fatal car crash case dating back two decades.
Ganesh Shenoy, 54, was taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service in Mumbai and flown to New York last week, according to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office. Shenoy is accused of causing a crash in April 2005 in Hicksville, a Long Island suburb, that killed 44-year-old Philip Mastropolo, a husband and father of two.
“After decades of evading law enforcement and dodging prosecution, my office finally returned this defendant to the United States to answer for the tragic death of a husband and father of two more than 20 years ago,” District Attorney Anne Donnelly said.
Shenoy was arraigned on Friday and ordered held without bail. He faces charges of second-degree manslaughter, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison under New York law.
Prosecutors allege Shenoy was driving at twice the speed limit when he ran a red light and struck Mastropolo’s car with such force that it skidded nearly 20 meters before crashing into a truck. Mastropolo was killed instantly. Shenoy, who refused medical treatment at the scene, fled to India just two weeks later despite having his passport confiscated.
An Interpol Red Notice was issued in 2005 after Shenoy was formally charged. Under India’s extradition treaty with the U.S., signed in 1997, fugitives can be returned if the offense is punishable by at least one year in prison in both countries. In India, the equivalent charge falls under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for rash or negligent acts not amounting to culpable homicide.
The extradition marks the first time since 2008 that India has handed over a suspect to the United States, signaling renewed cooperation in cross-border criminal cases. (Source: IANS)
