Indian-origin man arrested in US for deliberately driving car off cliff
Washington (PTI): A 41-year-old Indian-origin man has been arrested in the US on suspicion of attempted murder and child abuse after he intentionally drove a Tesla off a cliff with his wife and two children inside, according to media reports.
Dharmesh A Patel of Pasadena, California, will be booked into San Mateo County Jail after he is released from a hospital, the highway patrol said in a statement.
Patel, his wife and children survived and were rescued on Monday at Devil's Slide in San Mateo County, the California Highway Patrol said.
The rescue involved firefighters who rappelled down the cliff to save the two children, a 4-year-old girl, and a 9-year-old boy. A helicopter crew rescued the two adults from the vehicle, NBC News, an American broadcast television network, said.
The rescue was described as almost miraculous, The New York Times newspaper said.
The Tesla was 250 to 300 feet down, according to the highway patrol.
"Based on the evidence collected, investigators developed probable cause to believe this incident was an intentional act," it said in a statement.
Brian Pottenger, the incident commander for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said witnesses called 911 after the crash.
He said that it was "very, very rare" for people to survive such a steep fall and that the children's car seats may have saved their lives.
"We were actually very shocked when we found survivable victims in the vehicle. So that actually was a hopeful moment for us," Pottenger said.
The children had moderate injuries, Pottenger said.
Authorities plan to book Patel on three counts of attempted murder and two counts of child abuse, said Officer Andrew Barclay, a spokesman for the highway patrol's Golden Gate Division.
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Kalaburagi Jail Chief Superintendent gets threat
Kalaburagi (Karnataka), Nov 28: Kalaburagi Jail Chief Superintendent R Anitha on Thursday said that an unknown person sent an audio message via a police inspector claiming that they will blow up her car.
However, police said they have not received any complaints in this regard.
Speaking to reporters here, Anitha said, "Somebody has sent an audio message to the police inspector saying that they will blow up my car. I personally did not receive any such message so far, so I would not be lodging any police complaint."
Following the alleged threat, Anitha said she would be more cautious now.
Last month, after Anitha took charge as the Chief Superintendent of Jail, raids were conducted and searches were intensified after photographs and video clips purportedly showing three inmates getting special treatment in the Kalaburagi Central prison went viral on social media.
Following the raids, cell phones, gutka and cigarette packets and beedis were seized from the inmates.
