Arvin Batra of Hicksville and Hamza Rizvi of Bethpage on Long Island, NY were killed early Christmas Eve when Rizvi’s 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee crashed on Woodbury Road in Hicksville around 6 a.m. on December 24.
Arvin Batra, 19, is the son of Ajay Batra, the owner of IVSTV. Hamza Rizvi, is a Pakistani-American. The young Batra was known as a local entertainer participating in cultural events and television.
The cause of the crash remains to be determined by a police investigation, a CBSLocal news report said. The Nassau County Police Department Second Squad said that the men were traveling eastbound on Saturday, Dec. 24 at 6:06 a.m. when Rizvi apparently lost control of the Jeep, which struck a tree and caught fire near Wilfred Road. Batra and Rizvi were pronounced dead at the scene.
Arvin Batra had St. Johns University and while still a freshman, started ArvinBatraPromotions (later renamed ABNYGroup) and started hosting various parties in New York City, later expanding around the tri-state area. Batra also started a clothing line, Pharaoh Threads, which drew inspiration “from the decadence and prestige of Ancient Egypt and street-hustle culture of New York today to create a line of clothing that symbolizes ambition and royalty,” which according to the profile, was Batra’s “philosophy and attitude to the masses.
The two young men of South Asian origin are being mourned by family and friends. As per reports, a large number of Indian American community members visited Mr. Ajay Batra‘s home in Hicksville” to offer their condolences. Also, many from the Indian American community as also a large number from Pakistani community visited Mr. Rizvi to share the family’s grief over the tragic and untimely death of Hamza.
Detectives continue to investigate the accident and ask anyone with information to contact Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-8477. All callers will remain anonymous.