An alleged drunk driver broke down minutes before his court hearing when he found out that the car crash he caused killed his pregnant fiance and unborn baby.
Thirty-year-old suspect Adem Nikeziq wept uncontrollably when he appeared in court after his lawyer announced that his fiancée, who was seven months pregnant, and his unborn daughter did not make it in the car crash.
"No one told him that his fiancée and baby had passed. He found out minutes ago, just before he came out [into the courtroom]. When I told him, he broke down crying, sobbing. He was at first completely in disbelief," Mark Fonte, Nikeziq's lawyer, told the New York Post.
Nikeziq made his first appearance before the judge in a wheelchair and wearing a hospital gown. He was charged with manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, drunken driving, and vehicular assault in the crash that killed his family.
Unborn baby ripped from her mother's body
Adriana Sylmetaj, Nikeziq's fiancée, was 23 years old and a sister of an NYPD cop. She was seated on the passenger seat when their high-speeding 2021 Dodge Challenger crashed into a barrier and a wooden utility pole early Saturday morning, causing the vehicle to split in half at Staten Island, prosecutors in court stated.
Sylmetaj's cause of death was due to serious traumatic injuries. She was ejected from the passenger seat when the crash happened, and the unborn baby girl was expelled from her body.
She was found at a nearby intersection with her leg detached 20 feet past her body, while her unborn child was found 20 feet past her leg, ripped from her body, People reported.
Prosecutors narrated that the suspect lost control of the vehicle while dashing and weaving through traffic around 4:45 A.M. at Hylan Boulevard just before the car smashed into the barrier.
Assistant District Attorney Nicholas Agostino alleged that Nikeziq was driving "recklessly" after "a night of drinking" when the tragic incident took place.
Not drunk and pleaded not guilty
The suspect pleaded not guilty at the arraignment Tuesday.
According to court documents, Nikeziq denied being drunk and told authorities that the fatal collision was caused by another driver who cut him off on the road.
As of yesterday, the prosecutor has not provided evidence that alcohol was involved in the horrifying incident.
The suspect is held on a $400,000 cash bail or a $700,000 bond.
Nikeziq and Sylmetaj's names appeared on Buy Buy Baby online registry, where gift items such as swaddles, strollers, blankets, baby bottles, clothes, baby monitors, and even a car seat were present. The registration stated that their baby girl would arrive on April 12, 2023.
The New York Daily News talked to Sylmetaj's brother, Al Sylmetaj, who said that his sister was "excited" when she found out that she was pregnant and becoming a mother. She could not wait to give birth to their baby.
Al further shared that the couple was already thinking about what to name their child and planning to do a baby shower, which will never happen anymore.
