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A shocking video has surfaced showing the moment a suspected drunk driver crashed into a nail salon on Long Island, resulting in the deaths of an off-duty NYPD officer and three others, and injuring nine people.
The footage captures Steven Schwally driving a minivan that veers over a curb, briefly goes airborne, and then slams into Hawaii Nail & Spa in Deer Park at high speed on June 28. An unidentified man steps out of a nearby business just in time to witness the van hurtling past him and crashing into the salon.
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Screams are heard in the video as people rush out from nearby stores to assess the damage. The crash tragically claimed the life of 31-year-old off-duty NYPD officer Emilia Rennhack, who was getting her nails done for a wedding she was to attend that day. Three others, Jiancai Chen, 37; Yan Xu, 41; and Meizi Zhang, 40, also lost their lives. Among the injured was a 12-year-old girl.
Emilia Rennhack’s newlywed husband, NYPD Det. Carl Rennhack, witnessed Schwally’s arraignment on July 1 in Suffolk County court, where Schwally faced charges of driving while intoxicated. A memorial service on July 6 in New Hyde Park saw thousands paying their respects to Rennhack.
Prosecutors revealed that Schwally admitted to drinking 18 beers prior to the crash. He is currently being held on $1 million bail with a court appearance scheduled for July 19. This incident is not Schwally’s first offence; records show he had a previous DWI charge from March 25, 2013, in Dix Hills, where he fled the scene after striking a mailbox and was later found asleep in his running vehicle. Schwally received three years probation after pleading guilty to that charge.
