HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – A 17-year-old defendant charged with murder and aggravated assault in a crash that killed three valets in west Houston appeared in court Monday.
Ahmedal Tayeb Elnouman Modawi, 17, is charged with three counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault with serious bodily injury in the 230th State District Court.
Last week, Modawi appeared in probable cause court where a his bond was set at $350,000 -- $100,000 for each murder count and $50,000 related to the wounding of the passenger who was in the car with Modawi during the police pursuit.
Come Monday, Judge Chris Morton of Harris County’s 230th Criminal District Court reduced Modawi’s bond from $350,000 to $220,000 -- $60,000 for each murder count and $40,000 for the aggravated assault.
Modawi is scheduled to appear in court again on Dec. 15.
According to court documents read during the probable cause hearing last week, Modawi is from Sudan and is not a U.S. Citizen. He has resided with his family in Houston for the past five years.
RELATED: 3 valet workers killed after suspect involved in pursuit crashes near nightclub in southwest Houston
The fatal crash occurred at approximately 10:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 1 in the 5800 block of Fairdale Lane after a Sergeant with the Houston Police Department spotted Modawi, who was driving a white Infiniti G37, doing donuts in a parking lot nearby. When the sergeant activated his sirens in an attempt to conduct a traffic stop, Modawi fled at highways speeds down the residential street.
Modawi then hit three valets, 22-year-old Eric Orduna, 23-year-old Nick Rodriguez and 18-year-old Fnan Measho, before flipping the vehicle and crashing into a fence. Both Modawi and a passenger in the Infiniti G37 sustained inures in the crash. Modawi suffered a broke leg and his passenger, who was ejected from the vehicle during the crash, sustained serious injuries to both legs. They were both transported to an area hospital in stable condition, police said.
RELATED: Vigil held for valets killed Friday by a driver attempting to evade police
All three men Modawi struck were declared dread at the scene.
Modawi was himself a valet and had been driving a client’s vehicle during the police pursuit and subsequent crash.
Police determined Modawi was not intoxicated at the time of the crash. He was taken into custody.
RELATED: Houston man says he was shocked to learn his car was involved in crash that killed 3 valet drivers