The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office has charged a 23-year-old Gravesend man with second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and reckless driving for killing an 18-year-old passenger and injuring three others in a crash as he allegedly drove his Tesla at 100 mph through residential streets.
“This defendant’s alleged reckless driving caused the death of a young man whose entire life was ahead of him, and left others injured,” said Kings County District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. “My office will continue to fully investigate cases of vehicular violence and prosecute drivers who break the law on our roadways and endanger our communities.”
Prosecutors said John Mikhaylov was driving the car northbound at an “extremely high rate of speed” on National Drive in Mill Basin late at night on June 10, 2021, when he misjudged a 90-degree turn onto Strickland Avenue, drove through a metal fence, and hit two dumpsters.
After striking the dumpsters, the became airborne and flew 40 feet, rotating in midair. The back passenger side of the car hit a retaining wall, and the Tesla finally came to a stop in the driveway of Sunrise at Mill Basin, a senior living community at 5905 Strickland Ave.
An investigation found that the defendant is believed to have been driving 100 miles per hour only three seconds prior to the crash. Surveillance cameras outside of Sunrise at Mill Basin show the events of the collision and speeding, according to the DA’s office.
All four passengers including the defendant suffered injuries from the crash. One passenger, 18-year-old Jack Levy, who was sitting in the backseat, suffered fatal head trauma and was pronounced dead at Brookdale Hospital Medical Center in Brownsville the next day.
The crash left another 18-year-old passenger with multiple fractures, a laceration to his liver, and a bruised and collapsed lung; and a 22-year-old passenger sustained a fracture to his skull. A fourth passenger and the defendant endured minor injuries.
Mikhaylov was arraigned on Nov. 9 before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Matthew Sciarrino on charges of second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, second-degree assault, second-degree reckless endangerment, reckless driving and speeding. His bail has been set at $5,000 cash or $25,000 bond and he is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 19, 2023.
If convicted of second-degree manslaughter, Mikhaylov will face a maximum sentence of five to 15 years in prison.
