Off-Duty Officer and Three Others Killed in DWI Crash

(ProsperNews.net) – An off-duty New York Police Department (NYPD) officer was among four people killed when a drunk driver crashed into a nail salon on Long Island. NYPD officials confirmed that the dead officer was 30-year-old Emilia Rennhack from the city’s 102nd precinct. Officer Rennhack visited the salon in preparation for a fellow officer’s wedding and celebrated her own marriage just last September.

The incident happened at the Hawaii Nail & Spa on Grand Boulevard in Deer Park, Suffolk County. The salon’s owner, Jiancai Chen, and employees Meizi Zhang and Yan Xu also died, and a further nine people were injured. Police arrested 64-year-old Steven Schwally from Dix Hills at the scene, and he appeared in court on charges of driving while intoxicated. Prosecutors confirmed that more charges are pending, and Schwally is held on a $2 million bond.

Police departments across New York offered condolences to Rennhack’s devasted husband, also a fellow officer. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman called on the state’s law enforcement officers to remember her sacrifice and duty, while NYPD issued a statement saying it was mourning a tragic loss. “Officer Rennhack dedicated her life to serving and protecting our community with bravery, compassion, and unwavering commitment,” the statement read.

New York Republican Rep. Andrew Garbarino took to social media to urge people to remember the young officer and her family in their prayers. Friends have established online fundraisers for Ms. Rennhack and the other victims of the tragedy.

Witnesses stated that Steven Schwally was driving erratically and shouting at passersby from his vehicle immediately before the collision. At his arraignment, a prosecutor claimed that he had drank eighteen beers before taking the wheel of his SUV. Schwally has previously served with the US Marine Corps and was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in 2013 near his home in Dix Hills.

Suffolk County prosecutor Alexander Bopp said Schwally admitted to drinking until around 4 am on the day of the incident.