Teens in speeding car killed in Staten Island crash — NJ man faces charges

STATEN ISLAND — A New Jersey man was charged with driving with a suspended license after a collision that killed three teens Sunday night.

Officials say the teen driver in the collision had a learner's permit, which did not allow him to drive without a licensed adult present, and that the teen was speeding.

The teens were in a red Mustang around 8:45 p.m. on Hyland Boulevard in the Tottenville section of Staten Island when it collided with a GMC Yukon that was making a left turn onto Richard Avenue, according to the NYPD.

The Mustang went off the road and into a tree, splitting the car in half and ejecting two of the passengers.

NYPD said the Mustang was traveling at an "unsafe speed."

Fernanda Gil, 16, Jesie Gill, 15, and Ashley Rodriguez, 15, were killed in the crash. The 16-year-old male driver was hospitalized.

Unnamed law enforcement sources told SI Live that the teen driver only had a learner's permit. As in New Jersey, he should not be driving without a licensed adult in the car.

The passengers in the Yukon — a 44-year-old woman, a 19-year-old woman, a 23-year-old man, an 11-year-old girl and the driver, Maher Asi-Mahmoud, 47, of the Morganville section of Marlboro — were sent to a hospital for minor injuries.

Asi-Mahmoud was also taken into custody after police found he was driving with a suspended driver's license. He was charged with aggravated unlicensed operator but other charges are pending, according to the NYPD.

Dan Alexander is a reporter for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at dan.alexander@townsquaremedia.com

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