EAST BRUNSWICK – Police are hoping that the TV show “America’s Most Wanted” will help them track down the suspect in a car accident that killed a 9-yearold township boy on Christmas Eve 2001.
The program recently aired a segment on Rizwan Chaudhary, who at 23 had just finished his shift at Taco Bell when he and some friends allegedly began racing their cars on Ryders Lane. Chaudhary’s red 1998 Dodge Intrepid was reportedly traveling at more than 90 mph when it struck the side of a minivan pulling out of Corona Road.
The accident resulted in the death of Thomas Jung Lee, a third-grade student at Lawrence Brook School who was on his way to a Christmas Eve service with his mother, Young E. Lee, 40. Young E. Lee was injured but survived the accident.
Chaudhary was also injured in the accident and was treated at a local hospital. When the police investigation yielded the charges against him and a warrant was issued for his arrest four weeks after the accident, he was gone.
Police Lt. William Krause said the “America’s Most Wanted” show, which aired on ABC Sept. 9, produced tips during and after the broadcast, and police are following up to determine their credibility.
It is believed Chaudhary, an American citizen of Indian descent, may be in another state or even another country. Possible locations include New Jersey, Canada, Pakistan, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas. He lived in the Keasbey section of Woodbridge before the accident.
Now 28 years old, Chaudhary is about 5 feet 9 inches tall and was 130 pounds at the time of the accident.
If arrested, he will be charged with vehicular homicide, driving with a suspended license, suspended driving causing injury, reckless driving death, and suspended driver causing death, among other charges.
Around 7 p.m. on that Dec. 24, police said, Chaudhary, with a friend as his passenger, left work at the Taco Bell and began racing co-workers who were in another car, ignoring the 50 mph speed limit and even running a red light.
Young E. Lee was driving her minivan on Corona Road and stopped before turning onto Ryders Lane. She saw no cars coming on Ryders and proceeded. Police believe Chaudhary slammed on his brakes but his tires locked due to the excessive speed and the car skidded, hitting the minivan at 91 mph and sending it across the road.
Krause said the department decided to contact “America’s Most Wanted” for help in solving the crime, and community policing officer Frank LoSacco handled the task of getting the story on national TV. Krause said it was the first time the department has been involved with the program.
Township police are conducting the investigation in conjunction with fatal accident investigators from the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office.