New Charges for Fatal Blvd Crash Suspect

New charges are filed in an unrelated case against a central Pennsylvania man who allegedly struck and killed a Philadelphia woman and her three sons while drag racing in Philadelphia.

The latest charges against 23-year-old Khusen Akhmedov allege the Lancaster man was involved in another incident in Lancaster County on July 8, about a week before the fatal Philadelphia crash.

A woman called police about a driver waving a badge and driving recklessly and gave a license plate number that Manheim Township authorities traced to Akhmedov.

Court documents say he told police he was certified as an emergency medical technician but they could find no record that Akhmedov was either certified or employed as an EMT.

Akhmedov is charged with impersonating a public servant and reckless driving.

He is currently being held in Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility in Northeast Philly on charges of four counts of homicide by vehicle, third-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter and other related offenses in the death of 28-year-old Samara Banks and three of her children back on June 16. Akhmedov was allegedly speeding down Roosevelt Boulevard when he struck Banks and four of her children. Only one survived.

Court records in Pennsylvania show Akhmedov has nine driving infractions dating back to 2009. They include 4 speeding tickets in Bucks, Cumberland, Montgomery and York counties. The other violations include driving without a license, no valid inspection, failing to obey traffic control devices and two violations related to driving while his license was either revoked or suspended. He is guilty of all violations except for the most recent speeding ticket, which he received on the PA Turnpike near King of Prussia Mall in Montgomery County on May 11. For that case, he is set to appear in court on August 8.

On Akhmedov’s Facebook page, one of the videos posted is of a profanity-laced scene where two cars are seen drag racing on a deserted road. There is a second video where an Audi S4, similar to Akhmedov's, is seen doing fishtails and spinning out on a snow-covered parking lot. During the video, you can hear someone say, "Audi S4, Hass Akhmedov."

There are also dozens of photos, including pictures of Akhmedov posing with the Rocky statue, a photo of him with EMTs, posing in front of a fire truck and another photo of him sitting on top of his Audi with a Philadelphia Police sticker visible on the trunk.

His neighbors on Queen Street in Lancaster assumed that because of the police sticker, Akhmedov worked for law enforcement. That is a stretch from the reality of his day-to-day life, where he faces trial in a federal fraud and conspiracy.

On his Facebook page, Akhmedov says that he earned a Criminal Law degree from Penn State. According to Penn State spokeswoman Betty Roberts, Khusen A. Akhmedov did attend Penn State for one school year -- from the Fall of 2008 through the Spring semester of 2009 -- but the school has no record of him graduating.

Akhmedov also mentions that he speaks Russian and Turkish. A friend of the family, who did not want to be named, said Akhmedov came to the Lancaster area with his parents in the early 2000s. They chose that area because it has a growing community of Russian immigrants, according to the family friend.

On April, 10, Akhmedov had bail set at $100,000 in his federal case. He was released on his own recognizance that day, however and did not have to put up any money. Akhmedov is accused, along with six other people, of billing the government for millions of dollars in private ambulance runs that were not necessary. Akhmedov was an EMT for the company, according to the federal indictment. Penn Choice ambulance service operated out of Camp Hill, Pennsylvania.

Akhmedov is accused of conspiring with fellow Penn Choice employees to "transport by ambulance people who could walk or be safely transported by other means, falsely representing to Medicare that these patients required transportation by ambulance," according to the indictment. His alleged co-conspirators are accused of specifically targeting dialysis patients, falsifying trip sheets to say patients needed to be transported by stretcher and requiring medical monitoring, when neither were needed, according to federal prosecutors.

According to the indictment, "Akhmedov transported ambulatory patients, delivered kickback payments to patients and fasified 'trip sheets' related to patient transport."

Philadelphia prosecutors do not expect the federal case to interfere in any way with their case against Akhmedov.

"Many people face charges federally and locally," Jamerson said. "In the [Kermit] Gosnell case, we brought him up on charges and after our case was over, he pleaded guilty to federal charges. One has nothing to do with the other."

Akmedov's federal case goes on trial next March.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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