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A man set to stand trial for his alleged role in the deadly 2015 East Village gas explosion has died.
Michael Hrynenko Jr. died Aug. 25, according to an obituary posted on the Web site of the Pizzi Funeral Home, Northvale, NJ.
He was 31.
The cause of death was not disclosed.
Hrynenko was one of five suspects arrested in February 2016 on charges including manslaughter, assault and criminally negligent homicide in the Second Avenue blast that destroyed three buildings and killed two people.
The explosion was blamed on an illegal, cost-cutting gas-delivery system allegedly set up by Hrynenko and his mother, Maria Hrynenko, the building’s owner. Contractor Dilber Kukic, unlicensed plumber Athanasios Ioannidis and licensed plumber Andrew Trombettas were also charged.
The defendants have pleaded not guilty.
The Hrynenkos were expected to appear in Manhattan Supreme Court on Sept. 12, records show.
