An Indian citizen was extradited to Nassau County to face indictment charges for a high-speed crash on Old Country Road in Hicksville in April 2005 that killed a 44-year-old father and husband, according to Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly.
Ganesh Shenoy, 54, was arraigned on Sept. 26 and pleaded not guilty to manslaughter, Donnelly said. If convicted, he faces up to five to 15 years in prison.
Donnelly said, on April 11, 2005, at approximately 6 a.m., Shenoy allegedly drove through a steady red light at the intersection of Levittown Parkway and Old Country Road in Hicksville at a speed estimated to be twice the speed limit, and crashed into a Cadillac driven by 44-year-old Philip Mastropolo, who was heading to work.
The force of the crash demolished the victim’s vehicle and sent the car skidding 65 feet into the front of a freightliner box truck that was stopped at the red light on the other side of the intersection, the DA said.
Mastropolo was pronounced dead at the scene and Shenoy was taken to a hospital for treatment but refused medical attention and left the medical facility, Donnelly said.
Fourteen days after the crash on April 25, 2005, despite having his driver’s license and Indian Passport seized by police, Shenoy boarded a plane at John F. Kennedy International Airport headed to Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai, India. and never returned to the United States, Donnelly said.
The DA said an indictment was returned on Aug. 8, 2005, charging Shenoy with manslaughter and that a warrant was issued.
Shenoy was taken into custody by members of the U.S. Marshals Service and extradited to the United States on Sept. 25, marking the first extradition of a person from India to the U.S. since 2017, Donnelly said.
“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,” Donnelly said. “Ganesh Shenoy will be held responsible for his alleged actions, and my office will get justice for Philip and his family.”
