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The operator of the limousine company whose vehicle was involved in the fatal crash that killed 20 people Saturday in upstate New York has been arrested, state police told NBC News.
Nauman Hussain, the operator of Prestige Limousine, was taken into custody after a traffic stop on Wednesday, New York State Police said.
Prestige Limousine, of Gansevort, New York, is owned by Shahed Hussain and operated by his son, Nauman, according to the company’s attorney.
Earlier this week, police said Shahed Hussain was in Pakistan at the time of the incident.
Charges are pending against Nauman Hussain, police said, and it was not immediately clear if the charges would be related to the crash.
The Kindon Law Firm, which represents Prestige Limousine, did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the arrest.
The crash occurred Saturday afternoon when the driver of the 2001 Ford Excursion failed to stop at an intersection in Schoharie, New York, and careened into a parking lot before slamming into an unoccupied SUV, striking pedestrians, authorities said. Twenty people, including the driver of the Excursion and two pedestrians, were killed.
On Monday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the limousine failed an inspection last month and should not have been on the road. Cuomo also said the driver, Scott Lisinicchia, 53, did not have the specific documentation — a commercial driver’s license with a passenger endorsement — required to drive the limo.
NBC News obtained records showing that the limo had been cited numerous times for safety violations, including having “brakes out of service.”
The citation for the breaks, which was issued after a March 21 inspection, indicated that 20 percent or more of the roughly five-ton “stretch” limo’s stopping power was compromised.
This is a breaking news story, please check back for updates.