By Hector Flores
According to police, Robert Fowler, 57, of 185 N. Hickey St. in Massapequa, was arrested last Saturday in connection with the incident, in which Nina Sharma, 49, a mother of three, was killed. Fowler was arraigned on Sunday in First District Court in Hempstead, and charged with leaving the scene of an accident involving a fatality. He pleaded not guilty, and was ordered held with a bail of $100,000 bond or $50,000 cash. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of seven years in prison.
Police explained that Fowler was linked to the incident by the debris of car headlights at the scene, which matched his 1996 Dodge van. Police added that they were led to Fowler through an examination of registration records at the state¹s Department of Motor Vehicles.
Tarun Anand, Sharma¹s nephew, said that although having Fowler in custody helps bring closure in the wake of his aunt¹s death, his family feels that no matter what is done to Fowler, it will not ease the family¹s pain. ³I¹m grateful for the media, friends and family for helping us in our time of need, but none of that will bring my aunt back,² Anand said.
Night of tragedy
Detective Lt. Michael Fleming of the county¹s Homicide Squad said that at 11:40 p.m. on May 10, Sharma and her husband, Raj, were preparing for a walk when Nina noticed that the garbage had been put out without the bins. Raj went to the side of the house to get the cans, but when he returned, his wife was missing. He went looking for her, and found her body three houses down from theirs.
She was taken to Nassau University Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 12:17 a.m. According to the Nassau County¹s Medical Examiner¹s office, Sharma¹s death was caused by blunt force trauma to the head, neck, torso and extremities, fractures of the skull and cervical vertebrae, and contusions and lacerations to the brain.
Anand said he could not believe what had happened to his aunt. ³She was a very loving woman and she was loved by all,² he said. ³This is a great loss to our family and our community. I don¹t know what else to say.²
Anand added that his uncle, Raj, is still distraught about the incident. ³There is just a lot of sorrow, but we just have to move on at this point,² Anand said.
Neighbor Danny Nusallam, 17, noted the frequent stop signs on Stuyvesant Avenue. ³I can¹t believe they didn¹t stop and just drove off,² he said. ³It¹s just terrible.²
Tarah Mullor, 17, another neighbor of Sharma¹s, was shocked by the news. ³First of all, if you hit someone you should call the police, not just leave someone on the side of the road as if they don¹t matter,² she said. ³This is a good neighborhood, and most of the people are very respectful. ... I just can¹t believe this happened.²
Comments about this story? HFlores@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 283.
