Queens prosecutors have indicted Dawood Faisal in a fatal Francis Lewis Boulevard collision.
Prosecutors allege Dawood Faisal was driving more than 75 mph before a three-vehicle collision at Francis Lewis Boulevard and Union Turnpike in Queens at 7:48 p.m. on May 25, 2026, in which Cara Trager was fatally injured and six people were injured.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
Prosecutors allege Faisal drove a 2013 Toyota Prius south on Francis Lewis Boulevard at more than 75 mph in a 35-mph zone and ran at least two red lights. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported that Cara Trager died on May 29, four days after the collision. Faisal pleaded not guilty to charges including second-degree manslaughter; accounts differ about how the vehicles reached the couple, and later hate-crime charges concerned alleged vandalism at a separate business.
Prosecutors allege speeding, while reports differ on the impact sequence.
Queens prosecutors allege Faisal accelerated south on Francis Lewis Boulevard in a 2013 Toyota Prius, traveling more than 75 mph in a 35-mph zone and running at least two red lights. The DA said Faisal struck two vehicles and that two pedestrians in a crosswalk were struck during the resulting three-car crash. Prosecutors said bystanders detained him after he tried to flee. The official record reports six people injured.
Yeshiva World News reported that Faisal first collided with a westbound Mercedes-Benz, then with a Nissan Rogue, which was pushed into the couple. The New York Post's October article says Faisal struck the couple; its photo captions instead describe parked vehicles being pushed into them. The official record lists three vehicles but does not specify the impact order.
The crossing was at Francis Lewis Boulevard and Union Turnpike.
The official record places the collision at Francis Lewis Boulevard and Union Turnpike in Queens. Yeshiva World News reported that the couple was in a marked crosswalk; the official person record says the pedestrian who died was crossing with the signal. A September New York Post article describes the couple's route as Union Parkway, rather than the Union Turnpike listed in the official record.
Cara Trager was remembered for journalism and community service.
The Jewish Telegraphic Agency described Trager as a longtime journalist, a Queens College newspaper writer and a member of the Hollis Hills Jewish community; it said her support for Israel was a defining conviction. The JTA and official person record identify her as 71, while a New York Post photo caption gives her age as 70. The JTA reported that she died on May 29, four days after the collision.
At her funeral, her son Eric said, "My mother, Cara Trager, loved, and was loved deeply." The JTA reported that she was survived by her husband Michael, children Eric and Rachel, and four grandchildren. VINnews reported that Michael sustained a shoulder injury, hand lacerations and facial bruising.
The record identifies three vehicles in the collision.
Queens prosecutors identified Faisal as driving a 2013 Toyota Prius south. The official record lists a westbound 2026 Mercedes G Wagon and an eastbound 2023 Nissan Rogue; Yeshiva World News refers to the westbound vehicle as a Mercedes-Benz. The record lists the Nissan as stopped in traffic before the collision.
The crash charges remain separate from later hate-crime allegations.
The Queens District Attorney announced a 10-count indictment including second-degree manslaughter, assault, leaving the scene without reporting and reckless-driving charges. The DA said Faisal faced more than 15 years in prison if convicted. The JTA reported that he pleaded not guilty.
The Queens Eagle reported that Faisal was arraigned in October on two counts of third-degree criminal mischief as hate crimes over alleged vandalism at a Jewish-owned bagel shop on May 15 and May 23. VINnews reported that Michael Trager called for closer scrutiny of the crash after those charges, but said he did not believe Cara was specifically targeted. VINnews also reported that Faisal had not been charged with a hate crime in connection with the collision.