Varun Datt drove his car onto sidewalk while intoxicated, striking and injuring a man and child
MINEOLA, N.Y. – Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced the guilty plea of a Syosset man charged with driving drunk onto a residential sidewalk and striking a man and his 3-year-old niece in broad daylight in May 2021.
Varun Datt, 37, pleaded guilty today before Judge Caryn Fink on charges including Aggravated Vehicular Assault (a C felony); Assault in the Second Degree (a D felony); and Aggravated Driving While Intoxicated (an E felony). The defendant is due back in court on June 30, 2022, where he is expected to be sentenced to a maximum of three to nine years in prison.
“With empty alcohol bottles scattered about his vehicle –and another full bottle in his sweatshirt –this defendant jumped a curb in broad daylight while highly intoxicated, terrorizing a residential area and striking a man and 3-year-old child,” DA Donnelly said. “Because of the male victim’s quick thinking to shield his young niece, she suffered only minor physical injuries. This case is another truly egregious example of the danger drunk driving poses to the safety of our communities.”
DA Donnelly said, according to the indictment and investigation, on May 31, 2021, at approximately 4:30 p.m. the defendant, driving while intoxicated, veered onto the wrong side of a residential street in Syosset where a man was standing with his 3-year-old niece. The defendant’s vehicle jumped the curb onto the sidewalk and struck both victims. The car finally came to rest after striking a parked car head-on.
When police arrived on scene, Datt was still in the driver’s seat of the vehicle. Two empty bottles of rum and vodka were found in the car. The defendant’s sweatshirt also contained one full bottle of whiskey and two empty bottles.
The male victim was taken to Nassau University Medical Center where he was treated for extensive injuries, including a tear in his knee that required wheelchair use for six weeks.
The girl was taken to Cohen Children’s Medical Center where she was treated for abrasions and trauma.
Datt was arrested on May 31, 2021, in Syosset by detectives of the Nassau County Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Brooke Salvatore of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau. The defendant is represented by John Powers, Esq.
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