Mental breakdown leads California man to drive Tesla off cliff with family

The California radiologist accused of driving his family off a cliff in a Tesla may have had a mental breakdown, thinking his children were going to be sex trafficked, Independent informed of.

Dharmesh Patel is facing three charges of attempted murder after he fell from the Devil’s Slide near San Francisco last January with his wife and two children.

Patel, his wife, Neha, and their children – a 7-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy at the time – “miraculously” survived the fall.

The father of two has pleaded not guilty and has instead asked to be admitted to a mental health program.

In the ongoing trial, two doctors testified after conducting a series of 18 tests that, at the time of the accident, Patel was experiencing hallucinations in which she believed her children may have been sex trafficked.

These concerns were heightened by concerns related to Jeffrey Epstein, Russia’s war in Ukraine, and the fentanyl crisis.

After the accident, Neha told investigators that her husband was suicidal and intentionally drove away in the Tesla.

She said: “He’s depressed. He’s a doctor. He said he was going to drive off a cliff. He drove off on purpose.”

Patel has been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, a chronic mental condition similar to schizophrenia.