Source : Perth Now news
When Johnson Kokozian needlessly and erratically swerved onto the wrong side of Sadleir Ave, ploughing into an oncoming Toyota Echo, killing siblings Alina Kauffman and Ernesto Salazar, he showed more concern for his totalled luxury SUV than his victims.
Kokozian did not stop to check on Alina and Ernesto at the scene of the horrific crash at Heckenberg in Sydney’s southwest in September, 2023
Had he done so, he would have seen that Alina had died instantly and Ernesto was trapped in the front passenger seat, where he suffered cardiac arrest for 39 minutes before dying.
In his statements to other people in the hours afterwards, Kokozian only showed concern for his high-powered Mercedes AMG, which he had purchased earlier that day, and the fact it was uninsured.
He repeatedly lied to police about who was behind the wheel and took time to post a video to social media of him eating KFC.
So when Kokozian was last week sentenced and told he could be out after serving just five and a half years in jail, it left Alina and Ernesto’s family in shock.
Now their mother, Angelina Kauffman, is calling for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) to appeal Kokozian’s sentence and to fight to keep him in jail longer.
“I promised to my kids I will be their voice and they will get justice,” Ms Kauffman told NewsWire.
‘This is not justice’
Kokozian was on Wednesday sentenced by District Court Judge David Arnott to nine years in jail.
He had pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated dangerous driving occasioning death and two counts of failing to stop and assist after vehicle impact causing death.
Both offences carry maximum penalties of 14 years and 10 years’ jail, respectively.
But with time already served, Kokozian could be out by March 2029.
Ms Kauffman said the result had left a rage burning inside of her.
“I’m confused and angry with the justice system here,” she said.
“They don’t care about the victim. They don’t care about the victims’ families, they look after the criminals.”
She added: “My kids didn’t deserve to die, and they don’t deserve this, this is not justice.”
In response to questions about whether the ODPP would review Kokozian’s sentence, a media officer gave a generic statement.
“The ODPP will consider the sentence imposed in accordance with the Prosecution Guidelines,” the spokesperson said.
NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley also refused to answer questions about whether Kokozian’s sentence was inadequate and whether it should be appealed.
“While no sentence is capable of making up for the loss of a loved one, I can understand Ms Kauffman’s distress in this case,” Mr Daley said in a statement.
“The DPP is independent of government. Questions about its processes or decisions should be directed to the DPP.”
When told of Mr Daley’s response, Ms Kauffman said: “I think he truly doesn’t care.”
She also questioned how Mr Daley would react if his daughter had been killed in a crash and “left like she was worth nothing”, only for the killer driver to receive a minimum of five-and-a-half years.
But Ms Kauffman is not going to sit quietly on the sidelines and is ready to take up the fight.
She described Kokozian’s sentence as a “joke” said she felt like her soul had been ripped from her body.
“I don’t know what I need to do. I need to rile something up. I won’t sit down. I can’t let this go,” she said.
Crest of a hill
CCTV of the crash, which was played to the court, showed the devastating impact of the head-on crash, which sent Alina’a Toyota Echo spiralling backwards.
It also showed how fast Kokozian was travelling in the lead up – police estimated he was going between 100km/h and 109km/h in a 50 zone.
Moments earlier, one of Kokozian’s passengers had yelled “cops” after believing he had seen an unmarked police car.
Kokozian, whose licence was suspended at the time, sped up and began tailgating a white Volkswagen.
CCTV of the horror crash in Heckenberg in which Alina Kauffman and Ernesto Salazar were killed.
As he came to the crest of a hill on Sadleir Ave, Kokozian suddenly veered across unbroken double lines onto the wrong side of the road, his SUV speared into the Toyota being driven by Alina, who had just picked up her brother from work.
The impact was so ferocious, it was amazing the three occupants of the SUV were not killed.
‘You owe me your car’
In the aftermath of the crash, Kokozian and his two passengers did not stop to check on Alina and Ernesto.
They convinced a good Samaritan that one of the passengers, who had a cut to his head, needed to be taken to hospital.
But on the way they directed him to drive to Kokozian’s father’s house where they hid out.
During the car ride, Kokozian was heard making a call during which he said “I crashed the car” and “what do you mean there is no f***ing insurance on it” and “so I’m gonna get flogged for this, ay?”
In a conversation with another person on Snapchat, he again only showed concern for his car and money.
“I fkd my car,” he said.
“Flipped the new amg … F**k meee
When the other person asked if he was okay, he replied: “Wym lol … 300k gone”.
He later said in the conversation: “lost my 80k amg I bought today … I getting locked up for long.”
He later became angry with the passenger who yelled out “cops” and demanded he sign over his car.
“Why did you say there was a copper there? You owe me your car, I want you to sign it over now,” Kokozian told the man, according to court documents seen by NewsWire.
He also said: “I need 15k for a lawyer and 80k for the insurance for the car.”
Later, he again demanded the man sign over his car, and threatened to falsely tell police that the man was behind the wheel and to tell his girlfriend that he had slept with another woman.
Before his arrest, also Kokozian filmed himself on social media eating KFC.
“Mark my words this is the last KFC I’ll be eating for another 20 years,” he told the camera.
When he was arrested, Kokozian repeatedly attempted to shift the blame onto others.
When officers asked who was behind the wheel, he said: “His name, what did I say? F*** let me think cause my brain, like, I’ll be honest with you, Kamier, I think his name is like Abdul or Ali or something.
“I don’t wanna lie to you, you know what I mean.”
