Husband of driver in fatal crash involved in own accident
The husband of the Algonquin woman who crashed her SUV into a West Dundee Subway restaurant in March was involved in a mishap Saturday in a bank lot, hitting a parked car, driving over a sidewalk and nearly landing in a Carpentersville detention pond.
In each case, the driver said the brakes had failed.
Kesavan Rajagopal, 68, of Algonquin was pulling into a handicapped parking space at Harris Bank, 6900 Huntley Road in Carpentersville, when he says his 1982 Mercedes 380SL would not stop.
After jumping a curb, police said, Rajagopal's vehicle drove along a sidewalk before hitting an unoccupied parked car.
A police report says the vehicle continued south through the parking lot, went over a curb, crossed a landscaped strip, went off a curb, crossed an access road and climbed another curb, went through a grassy area and came to rest in brush at the edge of a retention pond.
Carpentersville police public information officer Cmdr. Michael Kilbourne said no citations were issued and no serious injuries were reported in the 11 a.m. crash.
A witness at the scene told police she did not see the vehicle's brake lights on as it passed and noted the vehicle was moving slowly.
An initial check by a tow truck driver and a police officer determined the brakes were functioning and that the brake reservoir contained fluid, the police report said.
Rajagopal declined to comment when contacted Tuesday.
A re-examination request form was completed and forwarded to the secretary of state's office, asking Rajagopal be ordered to undergo a new test for his license, police said. This would ensure he was physically capable of driving, police said.
In March, Shakuntala Rajagopal crashed her 2004 Acura MDX through the south wall of the Subway on Route 31 in West Dundee, killing 56-year-old John Venezia of Crystal Lake and injuring eight others.
Police said she told them the brakes failed and she lost control of the car while in a drive-through lane at the McDonald's south of the Subway.
Criminal charges were not filed in the accident, but at least two victims have filed lawsuits against Shakuntala Rajagopal.