Amandeep Singh, of Roslyn, pleads guilty in wrong-way crash that killed teens Drew Hassenbein and Ethan Falkowitz

Amandeep Singh, the Roslyn construction executive accused of killing two teenage tennis prodigies in a wrong-way drug and alcohol-impaired 2023 crash, pleaded guilty on Friday to aggravated vehicular homicide and other charges in Nassau County Court.

Singh, 36, who had a blood-alcohol level of nearly double the legal limit to drive, had been out drinking with friends at several bars the night of May 3 when he slammed his red 7,000-pound Dodge TRX pickup truck into the Alfa Romeo carrying 14-year-olds Ethan Falkowitz and Drew Hassenbein, killing them instantly.

The boys, who played on the varsity team though both still in middle school, were returning from a dinner out celebrating Roslyn High School's tennis tournament victory.

Singh will serve 8 ⅓ to 25 years in prison on the top count as part of the deal worked out with the Nassau District Attorney’s Office, and avoid a possible maximum 32 years behind bars. He could have served an additional 7 years in prison — to run consecutively to his other punishment — had he been found guilty of leaving the scene of an accident at trial.

"The defendant's criminal conduct was unconscionable," District Attorney Anne Donnelly said. "In my mind, nothing short of the maximum prison sentence for the top count charge would be enough to hold this defendant accountable for the devastation that he caused."

In addition to aggravated vehicular homicide, Singh pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree manslaughter, two counts of assault in the second degree, leaving the scene of a crash without reporting it, two counts of third-degree assault and drunken and drugged driving — 10 counts in all.

Singh had refused the same offer in November 2023, but after attempts by his lawyer to suppress incriminating police body-worn camera footage failed, he took the guilty plea.

Defense attorneys Edward Sapone and James Kousouros disputed claims by the parents of the boys and prosecutors that Singh had tried to dodge accountability for the deaths of the teens.

"Mr. Singh has been painted out as somebody without remorse, and that is the furthest thing from the truth. Both he and his family will forever bear the sorrow of this unspeakable tragedy, something that he understands, something that he feels every day, something that his family feels every day."

Family members of Ethan and Drew, as well as two older teens who were injured the crash, gathered in the courthouse on Friday morning. Sobs could be heard in the Mineola courtroom and family members wiped tears from their eyes throughout the proceeding.

Singh entered the courtroom in a black suit, white shirt and black tie. He did not acknowledge dozens of family members who attended in support.

After Supreme Court Justice Helene Gugerty asked him if he understood that he was giving up his right to a trial and his right to an appeal by pleading guilty, lead prosecutor Michael Bushwack asked him to admit to each of the 10 counts that he pleaded to.

"Were you driving that vehicle while impaired on the combined influence of alcohol and cocaine," the assistant district attorney asked.

"Yes," Singh replied.

"Did you flee the scene on foot and hide until law enforcement found you?" Bushwack asked.

"Yes," he said again.

"The evidence of his guilt was overwhelming, and I'm confident that any jury would have seen things just as we did," Donnelly said.

The night of May 3, 2023, started for the two tennis stars with a celebration at Buffalo Wild Wings with two older teammates.

Their talents at tennis were well beyond their years.

Drew had been ranked No. 1 in the country for boys under 12 years old. Ethan made the high school team as a starter in his eighth-grade year.

On the day of the crash, Roslyn High School had beaten archrival Syosset in a tournament.

"They talked, they laughed, they played that pop-a-shot basketball game at the arcade, and then they got into their friend's car to drive home," Donnelly said.

The older teen behind the wheel drove at 32 mph down North Broadway well under the 45 mph speed limit. A Breathalyzer test taken after the crash showed no traces of alcohol in his system.

That same night Singh went out drinking at a few Plainview restaurants with friends where he drank whisky and tequila. Several friends called for a car service when the party broke up, prosecutors said, but Singh and other friends piled into his truck and drove to a friend's house in Muttontown.

Several minutes later, about 10:19, he drove south, the wrong way, on North Broadway, reaching top speeds of more than 90 mph, before colliding with the Italian car carrying the teenage tennis players, prosecutors said.

Drew and Ethan died before police and ambulances got there. The driver suffered a concussion, prosecutors said, and still gets treatment for other injuries to his side. Broken glass had to be pulled from the other surviving boy’s eye who also hurt his leg.

Though Singh’s truck flipped over, he suffered only a cut to the back of his neck and was able to crawl from the vehicle and flee the scene.

"He didn’t just walk away," Donnelly said. "He fled like a coward."

Nassau County police who had canvassed the area after the crash found him hiding next to a dumpster behind a nearby mall.

Body-worn camera footage first obtained by Newsday showed Singh slurring his words and unsteady on his feet. He told officers that he thought he was in New Jersey and denied that the pickup truck was his or that he was involved in the accident. Four hours after he was arrested his blood alcohol content measured nearly double the legal limit to drive, prosecutors said.

Police arrested him after an eyewitness identified him as the driver who had fled.

In the nearly hourlong police video, Singh goes from denying being part of the crash to questioning police if the boys weren’t also drunk.

"Yeah, my life is done, man," Singh says in the video. "Bro, all the hard work I did. Whatever I was doing my whole life, Right? I’m 35 years old, man. I worked very hard in my life. I worked very hard in my life for my kids, for my family. It’s [expletive] done in one second?"

Singh was ordered to court on Feb. 7 for sentencing.