Man killed by car wheel dropped from St. Petersburg highrise

16 Nov, 2010 17:50 / Updated 14 years ago

A man in St. Petersburg has died after being hit by a car wheel thrown from an upper window of an apartment building.

The incident took place on November 8, but the story was only leaked to the media nearly one week later. The 44-year old Viktor Gubin was walking home through a residential district when he was struck by a car wheel, complete with its tire. The wheel landed centimeters from the man's feet, then bounced up and struck his head.The man was hospitalized with head injuries and a broken jaw, dying two days later. Police suspect a group of teenagers seen entering the building may be to blame. According to some media reports, the wheel was thrown from a balcony of an apartment at the 11th floor by a teenager who got mad at his girlfriend.Eric, 16, and Daria, 15, were having a heated argument. Enraged, Eric grabbed a heavy wheel lying nearby and hauled it down from the balcony, without pausing to look down.The wheel landed on the head of Viktor Gubin.The accident was recorded by the safety video cameras, which allowed the police to detain the teenagers. Eric now faces charges of involuntary manslaughter.