Deadly Crash in Kharkiv: Infiniti Ran Red Light at 100 km/h

The car was driven by a 16-year-old teenager.

On the evening of October 26, a fatal accident occurred in Kharkiv at the intersection of Gagarin Street and Odeska Street, involving an Infiniti, a Chevrolet and a Skoda. Here is everything known so far about the crash. 

Serhii Chyzh
Deputy Head of the Kharkiv Region Police Main Department

It was established that the Infiniti ran a red light and collided with a red Chevrolet Aveo, as well as with a parked Skoda. The driver of the Chevrolet died at the scene. The driver and passengers of the Infiniti were taken to a local hospital. 

According to him, four people were taken to hospital. Doctors are providing them with medical care, and their condition is stable. 

The speed of the Infiniti is being established, but according to preliminary data from police officers and investigators, it was over 100 km/h. Serhii Chyzh immediately confirmed that there is information that minors were in the Infiniti. 

At first, he did not specify the age of the Chevrolet driver. It is known that there are minors among the injured. According to police, men were behind the wheel of both cars, and the Infiniti passengers were a man and a woman. 

On the morning of October 27, it became known that police had detained the 16-year-old driver of the Infiniti, who drove at high speed through a red light and caused a fatal crash in Kharkiv. 

The National Police said: «The Infiniti driver has been detained under Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. Under the sanction of the article, he faces up to eight years in prison with deprivation of the right to drive vehicles for up to three years or without it. Investigative actions are ongoing». 

Currently, three Infiniti passengers are in the intensive care unit of the hospital. According to law enforcement, the 58-year-old Chevrolet driver who died and the 16-year-old Infiniti driver showed no signs of alcohol intoxication. 

A case has been opened over the crash under Part 2 of Article 286 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (violation of road traffic safety rules or vehicle operation rules by persons driving vehicles). 

Police are establishing the circumstances of the incident and reviewing footage from surveillance cameras. 

Recall that on the evening of October 18, 2017, at the intersection of Sumska Street and Mechnykova Lane in Kharkiv, a Lexus RX driven by 20-year-old Yelena Zaitseva was moving through a red light and collided with a Volkswagen Touareg driven by Gennadiy Dronov. 

As a result of the crash, the Lexus left the road, ran onto the sidewalk and struck 11 pedestrians, five of whom died at the scene (four girls and a young man). On the morning of October 26, another girl died in hospital from her injuries. A Lexus passenger was also injured in the crash. 

On February 26, 2019, the Kyivskyi District Court of Kharkiv found Dronov and Zaitseva guilty and sentenced both to 10 years in prison (the maximum term provided for under Part 3 of Article 286 of the Criminal Code). They were also deprived of the right to drive vehicles for three years.