Police: Drugged Driver Arrested After Crash That Kills Motorcyclist

A South Setauket man is dead and a Port Jefferson Station man faces charges following a crash between a car and a motorcycle in Coram Saturday afternoon.

According to police, Thomas Heissen Buttel was riding northbound on his 1972 Harley Davidson on Old Town Road when he was struck by a 2010 Volkswagen Jetta traveling southbound, when the driver, Sabelo Ndala, attempted to make a left onto Hyson Way at about 1:55 p.m.

Heissen Buttel, 56, was transported to Stony Brook University Hospital where he died from his injuries.

Ndala, 22, was not injured. He was arrested on charges of driving while ability impaired by drugs, operating a motor vehicle without an interlock device and second degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. Ndala was held overnight at the Sixth Precinct and is scheduled to be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on Sunday.

Both vehicles were impounded for safety checks. Detectives are asking anyone who may have witnessed the crash to call the Vehicular Crime Unit at 631-852-6555. The investigation is continuing.

SCPD photo: Sabelo Ndala