Errant Van Hits HomeGoods | The East Hampton Star

A Danbury, Conn., man was arrested on a drunken-driving charge after an accident Friday night in which he hit the HomeGoods building in Wainscott, East Hampton Town police said.

Johannatan Arturo Merchan-Heras was headed west on Montauk Highway in a 2003 Chevrolet van when it left the road just west of Wainscott-Northwest Road around 11:50 p.m. The van hit a utility pole on its front passenger side, then a street sign, before heading over a cement curb, hitting a concrete-filled metal pole and a water meter, then an electrical panel, and finally the building. Police found the driver standing near the van, which was registered to him. There were no passengers. He complained of head pain, but was not taken to the hospital, according to the police report. He performed poorly on all field sobriety tests and was charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor, as his blood alcohol level was above .18, police said.

East Hampton Town Justice Lisa R. Rana released him on $300 bail following an arraignment Saturday morning.

Long Days on the Fire Line In Orange County

East Hampton and Amagansett firefighters volunteered to head north last week to help fight a 5,000-acre wildfire in Orange County, N.Y., not once but twice, battling unfamiliar terrain to do so. “They fight fires completely differently than we do when we have a brush fire,” the Amagansett chief said.

Nov 21, 2024

Awards for Good Policing in Handgun Scuffle

“It could have gone worse. We’re lucky that I have officers here that weren’t shot,” said Police Chief Jeff Erickson at Friday’s East Hampton Village Board meeting. Chief Erickson was recognizing Sgt. Wayne Gauger and Officers John Clark and Robbie Greene for a traffic stop on Aug. 31 that turned into a scuffle and the eventual confiscation of an illegal gun.

Nov 21, 2024

On the Police Logs 11.21.24

A Three Mile Harbor Drive resident reported an online dating scam on the afternoon of Nov. 16. Somehow, said the 80-year-old man, a person on the dating platform had gotten his phone number and demanded $2,000 from him, threatening to tell his family he was using the site if he did not comply. Police told the man to block the number.

Nov 21, 2024

Head-On Collision on Route 27

A 2-year-old was taken to Stony Brook Southampton Hospital following a head-on collision Saturday afternoon on State Route 27 near Upland Road in Montauk.

Nov 21, 2024

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