More Charges Against Geneva Man in Naperville Drowning Deaths

By Amie Schaenzer

More charges have been filed against Michael T. Szot, 21, of Geneva, who is accused of of driving drunk into a Naperville quarry in a crash that claimed the lives of of his two friends who were passengers in the vehicle.

Szot was originally charged with two counts of reckless homicide and four counts of aggravated DUI, which is a greater felony in Illinois than reckless, but is now charged with with nine counts of aggravated DUI, according to online court records.

Szot entered not guilty pleas to all charges on Monday. He could face between six and 28 years in prison if found guilty on the charges, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Szot is accused of having a blood-alcohol concentration of .14 when he crashed into a Naperville Park District quarry at about 1:45 a.m. on July 19.

While Szot was able to get out of the vehicle after it plunged into the quarry, but two passengers in his vehicle, Mihirtej Boddupalli, 21, of Lisle, and Sajaad Safiullah Syed, 21, of Naperville, were not able to escape. Divers discovered their bodies still in the vehicle at the bottom of a quarry located at the northwest corner of intersection Aurora Avenue and Eagle Street.

Both Boddupalli and Syed were 2011 graduates of Naperville North High School where they ran cross-country and were well-liked, according to the Daily Herald. Boddupalli was a student at Northwestern University where he was studying to be an engineer while Syed attended Indiana University, the Daily Herald reports.

Authorities said the accident happened after Szot failed to make it around a curve while traveling west on Aurora Avenue near Eagle Street, left the roadway, crashed into several trees and landed in the quarry. A woman stopped at the intersection of Eagle and Aurora said Szot’s vehicle looked like a “white streak” when it passed her, according to the Chicago Tribune.

A motion filed by prosecutors last month alleges on the night of the crash, Szot and his two friends first headed to a party and then to a Naperville bar at 9 p.m. where Szot said he had 8 to 9 beers and several rum shots, according to the Chicago Tribune. Tests also found marijuana present in Szot’s system.