The FBI is investigating the 2018 Schoharie limousine crash, according to New York Representatives Paul Tonko and Elise Stefanik.
Tonko, a Democrat from the 20th District, and Stefanik, a Republican from the 21st, had asked the agency to review its involvement with the company involved in the crash that killed 20 people.
A New York Magazine article earlier this year suggested that Prestige Limousine owner Shahed Hussain and his family were shielded by the FBI as a reward for Hussain’s longtime role as a confidential informant.
“I was deeply disturbed by the extensive press coverage alleging connection between the FBI and Prestige Limousine as it pertained to the tragic Schoharie limo crash that took the lives of 20 people in October 2018,” Congressman Tonko said in a statement. “Following this coverage, I sent a letter on behalf of the families of the loved ones who were lost to the agency demanding answers on the accuracy of these allegations. While the FBI initially refused to comment on potential FBI connections to the case, my staff and I continued to push behind the scenes and I’m grateful that the FBI has finally agreed to open an investigation into how this matter was handled. These families deserve answers and I will not stop until they have them. I look forward [to] learning more from the FBI about the results of this investigation and will continue to do all I can to search for answers into this senseless tragedy.”
"This investigation must happen quickly and thoroughly in order to provide the devastated families and communities answers that they have been waiting years for," Congresswoman Stefanik said in a statement. "I will continue to hold the FBI accountable and demand transparency on behalf of Upstate New York.”
A letter Tonko received from the FBI reads in part:
"The FBI shares your concerns about this tragic limousine crash that claimed the lives of twenty people. In recent months, concerns have been raised about this incident and whether there was any FBI involvement in the investigation. As a result, the Director ordered that the FBI further review the matter. A review was promptly commenced by the Inspection Division and is ongoing. Therefore, the FBI is not in a position to provide further information at this time."
Shahed Hussain is believed to be overseas. In September, his son Nauman Hussain, who served as operator of the limo company, pleaded guilty to 20 counts of criminally negligent homicide for his role in the crash in exchange for 1,000 hours of community service.
