Suffolk police charge Deer Park man in West Islip bike hit-and-run

A 13-year-old boy riding a bicycle in West Islip was left with minor injuries after police say a Deer Park man struck him and drove away, a crash that video appears to place near Oquenock Elementary School. Suffolk police arrested Charles Dreitlein, 67, outside his home Monday evening and charged him with assault and leaving the scene of an accident resulting in personal injury.

Police said the crash happened at about 7:35 p.m. Sunday, June 8, 2026, at Ruth Street and Kane Street. News 12 reported that surveillance video captured the collision on Roderick Road near Spruce Avenue, around the corner from Oquenock Elementary School, and showed a vehicle moving toward a group of children on bikes. The footage appears to show the car slowing, veering toward the children, hitting them and then driving off with one of the bikes still underneath.

The injured boy suffered minor injuries, according to News 12. The boy’s father has pushed for upgraded charges, adding another layer of urgency to a case that has quickly moved beyond a neighborhood traffic complaint and into a broader argument over accountability when a driver leaves a child at the scene of a crash.

Dreitlein was held on charges that reflect both the impact of the collision and the decision not to stop. Police said he continued on Roderick Road without stopping after the impact. He was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday at the First District Court in Central Islip.

The case has resonated because it involves a child cyclist, a residential street and a school zone area where families expect drivers to slow down and stay alert. It also puts Suffolk County police under a familiar public expectation: their stated mission includes maintaining a safe environment and rendering aid to those in need. When a crash ends with a child hurt and a driver allegedly gone, that promise becomes part of the public record too.