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Neha Patel was inactive conscious erstwhile paramedics rescued her from a achromatic Tesla that had gone disconnected Highway 1 implicit the cliff astatine Devil’s Slide and tumbled hundreds of feet down to the beach.
As they rescued her, Patel made statements to paramedics that helped pb to the 3 attempted execution charges filed Monday against her husband, Dharmesh Patel, 41, who was driving the Tesla erstwhile the clang took place.
“‘He intentionally tried to termination us,’” Neha Patel told paramedics, San Mateo County Dist. Atty. Stephen Wagstaffe told The Times connected Monday.
“She said precise simply this was not an accident,” Wagstaffe added.
Patel was charged with attempted execution with enhancements aft an probe by the territory attorney’s office, according to tribunal records.
Patel was arrested by the California Highway Patrol connected suspicion of attempted execution and kid endangerment aft the Jan. 2 crash, but prosecutors waited until aft helium was transferred retired of the hospital past week to complaint him. His woman and 2 children person besides since been released from the hospital.
Wagstaffe clarified that his prosecutors person not interviewed Neha, but that they person capable to record charges without her statement.
Patel drove Neha, their 7-year-old girl and 4-year-old lad disconnected the cliff astatine Devil’s Slide, a notoriously unsafe information of Highway 1 astir 15 miles southbound of San Francisco. The car tumbled 250 to 300 feet, with authorities describing the family’s rescue arsenic an “absolute miracle.”
But the occurrence rapidly turned acheronian aft constabulary arrested Patel portion helium was inactive hospitalized, saying investigators had probable origin to judge the clang was intentional.
On apical of Neha’s statement, prosecutors besides secured video from a passageway conscionable earlier the clang tract that shows Patel “making a crisp close crook implicit the cliff,” Wagstaffe said. Prosecutors person besides spoken to 2 witnesses successful cars that were down the Patels who volition attest that they did not spot the car effort to brake earlier going implicit the cliff, helium said.
The territory attorney’s bureau is besides hoping to interrogation the daughter, though the household has declined to marque the miss available, Wagstaffe said.
“We person concluded that the grounds supports the information that helium intentionally drove his conveyance implicit that cliff, thereby evidently endangering not conscionable his woman and 2 children but his ain life,” Wagstaffe said astatine a quality league Monday aft Patel’s archetypal quality successful court.
Patel was ordered held without bail.
The apprehension shocked the Patels’ neighbors connected their tree-lined cul-de-sac successful Pasadena.
Patel was a radiologist astatine Providence Holy Cross Medical Center successful Mission Hills.
“They’re a beautiful, idyllic family, nary denotation of issues,” said Roger Newmark, a neighbour who has lived connected the artifact much than 40 years. “It’s truthful unusual due to the fact that helium is simply a large guy.”
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