08-08-2008, 05:04 PM
By Macollvie Jean-François | South Florida Sun-Sentinel
August 8, 2008
The wife of Broward Sheriff's candidate Shahruhk "Shak" Dhanji rear-ended an elderly neighbor while driving without valid insurance in 2004, then the candidate tried to get out of reporting the crash, the victims said Wednesday.
The collision in Coconut Creek is one of 10 traffic infractions Amina S. Dhanji, 47, has racked up since 2001, according to Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles records.
"He would've put us in a real predicament," said Carol Erley, whose husband, Hans G. Erley, 85, was driving. "I went off thinking, [he's] got insurance, we'll be fine. Boy, was I wrong," Carol Erley said.
The Dhanjis said Wednesday they had insurance and that the matter was settled.
Dhanji and four other Democrats are vying to face incumbent Sheriff Al Lamberti, a Republican, in the November elections.
"When he's running for a high office like this one, then, by God, he should obey the law," Carol Erley said.
The crash involving Hans Erley happened Jan. 12, 2004, according to the Coconut Creek Police report of the collision. Hans Erley was sitting at a red light at Wiles and Lyons Roads in his SUV when a vehicle driven by Amina Dhanji struck him. Amina Dhanji said Hans Erley had stopped short.
Both drivers telephoned their spouses, who arrived within minutes from homes nearby.
"He [Dhanji] told me, 'Look, we don't have to involve the police. I'll pay for the damage,'" Carol Erley said.
"I would never do that," Dhanji said on Thursday. "When I arrived, law enforcement was already on the scene."
The Erleys called police, and the drivers presented insurance cards. Police cited Amina Dhanji for careless driving and driving with an expired tag.
Later, the Erleys' insurance adjuster discovered the Dhanjis' insurance had been canceled in September 2003, Carol Erley said. The insurance company collected the money for repairs from the Dhanjis.
Amina Dhanji has received 10 citations between 2001 and February 2008, according to Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. She was found guilty of driving with an expired tag twice — including from the accident involving Erley — and once each for making an improper turn, running a red light and not paying the toll. The others were adjudicated.
"This is rubbish," Amina Dhanji said, when shown the list of infractions.
August 8, 2008
The wife of Broward Sheriff's candidate Shahruhk "Shak" Dhanji rear-ended an elderly neighbor while driving without valid insurance in 2004, then the candidate tried to get out of reporting the crash, the victims said Wednesday.
The collision in Coconut Creek is one of 10 traffic infractions Amina S. Dhanji, 47, has racked up since 2001, according to Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles records.
"He would've put us in a real predicament," said Carol Erley, whose husband, Hans G. Erley, 85, was driving. "I went off thinking, [he's] got insurance, we'll be fine. Boy, was I wrong," Carol Erley said.
The Dhanjis said Wednesday they had insurance and that the matter was settled.
Dhanji and four other Democrats are vying to face incumbent Sheriff Al Lamberti, a Republican, in the November elections.
"When he's running for a high office like this one, then, by God, he should obey the law," Carol Erley said.
The crash involving Hans Erley happened Jan. 12, 2004, according to the Coconut Creek Police report of the collision. Hans Erley was sitting at a red light at Wiles and Lyons Roads in his SUV when a vehicle driven by Amina Dhanji struck him. Amina Dhanji said Hans Erley had stopped short.
Both drivers telephoned their spouses, who arrived within minutes from homes nearby.
"He [Dhanji] told me, 'Look, we don't have to involve the police. I'll pay for the damage,'" Carol Erley said.
"I would never do that," Dhanji said on Thursday. "When I arrived, law enforcement was already on the scene."
The Erleys called police, and the drivers presented insurance cards. Police cited Amina Dhanji for careless driving and driving with an expired tag.
Later, the Erleys' insurance adjuster discovered the Dhanjis' insurance had been canceled in September 2003, Carol Erley said. The insurance company collected the money for repairs from the Dhanjis.
Amina Dhanji has received 10 citations between 2001 and February 2008, according to Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. She was found guilty of driving with an expired tag twice — including from the accident involving Erley — and once each for making an improper turn, running a red light and not paying the toll. The others were adjudicated.
"This is rubbish," Amina Dhanji said, when shown the list of infractions.