When police led Khusen Akhmedov, shirtless, out of his home in Lancaster on Wednesday, neighbors didn't know he was about to be charged with killing a young mother and three of her children.
They did know that Akhmedov's car looked like it had been in an accident.
The same car he boasts about on his Facebook page, an Audi S4, is the car Philadelphia police say was speeding down Roosevelt Boulevard when it raced right into Samara Banks, who was crossing the busy highway with four of her children. Only one survived.
Judging from the photos and videos posted on his Facebook page, Akhmedov appears to be a fan of fast cars. A check of court records in Pennsylvania reveals he And he has a history of speeding violations.
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.
Witnesses told police Akhmedov was speeding on the night of the crash. He and Ahmen Holloman were allegedly racing down the Boulevard when, according to police, Akhmedov lost control of his car, plowing into Samara Banks as she was crossing the street in the Feltonville section of the city with her kids. Banks, 28, died and so did her three youngest children, ages 7 months, 23 months and four years old. Her 5-year-old son survived with bumps and bruises.
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.
Akhmedovv also mentions that he speaks Russian and Turkish. A friend of the family, who did not want to be named, said Akmedov 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.
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Akhmedov is charged with four counts of homicide by vehicle, third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter as well as reckless endangerment, aggravated assault, simple assault and aggravated assault by vehicle charges. Prosecutors decided the second driver should face the exact same charges, even though his Holloman's car did not strike the victims.
"Because they were both operating in a reckless manner that resulted in the death of four people," said Tasha Jamerson, a spokeswoman for Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams. "The charges applied to the laws that they both broke."
Bail for each man has been set at $2.5 million.
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.
