Man crashes car through neighbor's front door in Lake Ronkonkoma, police say

Suffolk police charged a Lake Ronkonkoma man with driving while intoxicated after he crashed his car through the front of a neighbor's home early Sunday, authorities said.

Dallas Vadala, 20, of 1 Campus Lane, faced arraignment Sunday at First District Court in Central Islip after being held at the Sixth Precinct, police said.

Vadala lost control of his 2010 Hyundai Sonata just after 3 a.m. and drove into the home of his next-door neighbor, Jamie Cosgrove, 35, police said.

Cosgrove, asleep with his girlfriend at the time, said a loud noise jarred them both awake. It sounded like something fell inside his house, Cosgrove said. He got up to investigate and discovered his refrigerator in a nearby room, but not the kitchen.

"Basically, we were woken up to a crashing sound of his car going through my kitchen," Cosgrove said. "It's not exactly the alarm clock I wanted."

By the time Cosgrove saw the wreckage, the driver had fled, he said.

"It looks like the house is what stopped him," Cosgrove said.

Cosgrove said he knew Vadala from the neighborhood and Saturday night his children were sleeping over at the Vadala family home.

Cosgrove said he boarded up the hole in his house Sunday morning and is living in a hotel while he waits for insurance adjusters.

"It's a little bit of a blur. I walked around, and I was staring at a disaster," Cosgrove said. "I guess now we play the waiting game."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.