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Nafees Bilal

Age : 35

Gender : Male

Race : Asian

Date : 02/17/2022

Location : NC Highway 86 and Piney Mountain Road

City : Chapel Hill

County : Orange

State : North Carolina

Agency : North Carolina State Highway Patrol

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Passenger killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

REASON FOR CHASE: Passenger killed during speeding pursuit; a North Carolina State Highway Patrol trooper pursued the vehicle after observing it traveling approximately 133 mph on Interstate 40 in a 65-mph zone.
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NARRATIVE:
On 02/17/2022, 35-year-old Nafees Bilal was critically injured while riding as a passenger in a gray Infiniti that crashed into a tree during a North Carolina State Highway Patrol pursuit in Orange County. FARS subsequently records the crash as involving two fatalities.
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Shortly before 3:00 a.m., a North Carolina State Highway Patrol trooper observed the Infiniti traveling westbound on Interstate 40 at approximately 133 mph in a 65-mph zone. The trooper attempted to stop the vehicle and pursued it when the driver, 31-year-old Juan Aquino, continued westbound.
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The Infiniti exited Interstate 40 onto NC Highway 86. As the driver attempted to turn left onto Piney Mountain Road, he lost control. The vehicle left the roadway and struck a tree.
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Bilal and Aquino were both ejected from the heavily damaged vehicle. Contemporary reporting also described the vehicle as catching fire following the crash. Emergency personnel transported both men to a hospital in critical condition.
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The initial February 17 news coverage therefore describes Bilal as critically injured rather than deceased. However, the final 2022 fatal-crash record for Chapel Hill identifies the February 17 crash at NC-86 and Piney Mountain Road at approximately 2:51 a.m. as involving one vehicle, two occupants and two fatalities. This matches the Aquino/Bilal pursuit crash and establishes that both men ultimately died.
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The incident date remains 02/17/2022, the date of the pursuit and crash. The publicly indexed sources located do not establish Bilal's exact subsequent date of death.
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Bilal was the passenger, not the person driving the vehicle police were pursuing. The documented reason for the pursuit was the driver's alleged speed of approximately 133 mph. No reliable source located provides the total pursuit distance or duration.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
The North Carolina State Highway Patrol did not publicly identify the trooper who initiated the traffic stop and pursuit.
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SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.wral.com/story/men-thrown-from-car-after-133-mph-chase-on-i-40-in-orange-county/20144161/
https://lanoticia.com/noticias/usa/nc/ral/2-hombres-uno-latino-gravemente-heridos-tras-persecucion-en-orange/
https://www.city-data.com/accidents/acc-Chapel-Hill-North-Carolina.html