The man who has been accused of killing Nicki Minaj's father in a hit-and-run is being sued for $150 million.
A lawsuit was filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York on Friday against Charles Polevich, 70, who has been charged with leaving the scene of an accident and tampering with evidence for the car crash that killed Robert Maraj last month. Ben Crump Law announced the news on Twitter.
"Charles Polevich was not only irresponsible and negligent in hitting Robert Maraj, but he was more concerned about running away and hiding than seeking help for the man he injured," the post read. "Polevich's behavior was criminal, cowardly, and immoral. Through the filing of this lawsuit we intend to hold him responsible for his reckless actions and achieve justice for the victim's widow."
In a statement to the outlet, Polevich's attorney, Marc C. Gann, said that the civil suit was not unexpected but the pending criminal charges had no bearing on the civil case.
"It has yet to be determined whether there was any negligence involved in the accident or the degrees of any negligence," he said. "I will add that the amount demanded is shocking to say the least and I don’t believe is in any way reasonable."
Maraj was struck by the car on Feb. 12. He was rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition and pronounced dead the following day.
According to police, Polevich stopped his vehicle after hitting Maraj and got out to check on him. He reportedly asked if Minaj's father was all right before getting back into his vehicle and fleeing the scene. He went home and allegedly tried to hide the car with a tarp.
"He was absolutely aware of what happened," Nassau County Police Detective Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick said at the time, per Entertainment Tonight. "He got out of the car and he looked at the deceased, got into his car, and made the conscious decision to leave instead of dialling 911, instead of calling an ambulance for the man. He went home and secluded the vehicle. He’s well aware of what he did."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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