Bethpage, NY - November 9th, 2013 - The Highway Patrol Bureau reports the Arrest of a Plainview man that occurred in Bethpage on Saturday, November 09, 2013 at 1:05 A.M.
According to police, defendant John Derrico, age 51 of 4 Ruey Place operated a 2013 Ford southbound in the northbound lanes of the Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway (RTE 135) in the vicinity of Exit 8 (Powell Avenue). The defendant’s vehicle then collided with a 2007 Volvo being operated northbound in the center lane and continued on striking the center median. The 29 year old male operator of the Volvo was not injured. A Highway Patrol Bureau police officer responded and observed flames coming from underneath the hood of the defendant’s vehicle. He was able to remove Derrico from the car. A subsequent investigation determined the defendant was operating under the influence of an alcoholic beverage. He was taken into custody and removed to an area hospital for medical evaluation. The vehicle he was driving was impounded. It is undetermined as to where Derrico entered the Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway.
The defendant was charged with Reckless Endangerment 1st Degree, Driving While Intoxicated, Reckless Driving and Driving the Wrong Direction on a One Way Street. He will be arraigned at First District Court in Hempstead on Sunday, November 10, 2013.