A California man has been arrested and charged with intentionally driving a Tesla off a cliff with his wife and two children inside the car in an incident that occurred on January 2.
The man identified as Dharmesh Patel, 41, of Pasadena, was charged with attempted first-degree murder and child abuse, as well as aggravated grievous bodily harm and domestic abuse, San Mateo District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said. , at a press conference on Monday, Fox News reported.
A San Mateo judge on Monday granted a request to hold Patel without bail at the Maguire Correctional Center, citing the danger he poses to his family, according to San Francisco Chronicle reporter Matthais Gafni.
The suspect, who is a doctor, was scheduled to be arraigned Monday afternoon, but his lawyer requested a delay, according to Gafni. The judge granted restraining orders to Patel’s family, according to reports.
For his part, Mark Andrew, an officer with the California Highway Patrol (CHP), said a day after the accident that he did not believe that the Tesla was on autopilot at the time of the accident on the cliff ‘Devil’s Slide’.
The rescuers managed to get a 7-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy, who had musculoskeletal injuries. Both Patel and his wife were pulled from the vehicle’s windows.
“We go there all the time to get the cars off the cliff, and they never survive. This was an absolute miracle,” Brian Pottenger, battalion chief for the Coastside/Cal Fire Fire Protection District, said after the accident.
Authorities are thoroughly reviewing the car to determine if the vehicle may have experienced any mechanical problems during the accident, so Patel’s actions are believed to have been “intentional,” District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said in a statement. statements to the Los Angeles Times.