Crime & Safety
OnStar Alerts Police to Accident; Driver Charged With DWI
Police said Richard E. Depetris, 36, hid vehicle after crashing into tree.
A 36-year-old Southampton man was drunk early Saturday when he crashed his vehicle into a tree then tried to hide the vehicle and walk off, according to police.
It was the vehicle's OnStar system that tipped them off to the accident, police said. OnStar personnel called the Southampton Town Police Department to report an accident at Noyac and North Sea roads, with no response from the driver. When officers arrived on scene, the vehicle and the driver were nowhere to be found, cops said. However, Richard E. Depetris, of Southampton, was located walking nearby.
Police said Depetris hid the vehicle in a driveway, but ultimately told officers where it was.
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"It was determined that he was intoxicated and he was placed under arrest," police said.
Depetris was charged with driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor, and leaving the scene of an accident, a violation. He was held overnight for morning arraignment.
