Prison Time For Repeat DWI Driver Who Killed Mahopac Man, Hid Car

PUTNAM COUNTY, NY — Maggie Deperna, the Mahopac resident who killed a man in a hit-and-run, then hid her damaged Jeep and drove drunk in a rental car last summer, will be spending the next six to 18 years in state prison, District Attorney Robert Tendy announced Thursday.

The 38-year-old woman killed James Crecco, Sr. on June 25. Jimmy Crecco was on Route 6N getting into his car in front of his brother’s Lake Mahopac home when Deperna hit him and kept going.

An exhaustive search throughout the night conducted by members of the Putnam County Sheriff’s Department and the Carmel Police Department led them to Deperna’s home. SEE: Police Seek Jeep Cherokee That Killed Pedestrian In Mahopac

The DA said drone surveillance revealed her Jeep Cherokee hidden in the brush and trees behind her home with extensive damage to the front passenger’s side consistent with having struck a person.

Specifically, her vehicle was missing a right-side rear-view mirror — one had been recovered at the crash scene.

Deperna was arrested the following morning, after a member of the Sheriff's Narcotics Enforcement Unit conducted a traffic stop on a rental car she was driving. She was still intoxicated, Tendy said.

Investigators then spent days carefully piecing together Deperna’s whereabouts leading up to the fatal crash.

Video surveillance, license plate reader technology, and GPS location tracking data revealed that Deperna purchased alcohol from a liquor store on the morning of the crash and again about an hour before the crash, while driving to several places in between, including a nail salon and McDonalds.

At approximately 7:30 PM, video surveillance showed Deperna consuming a margarita at a nearby restaurant before getting into her car, pulling onto Route 6N and swerving into oncoming traffic, almost causing a head-on collision with another driver, within seconds of turning the bend and striking Crecco.

GPS data concluded that after the crash, Deperna drove directly home, where empty bottles of wine that she was on video having purchased that day were later recovered.

Deperna's drunk driving wasn't new. Police discovered she had been arrested on DWI charges in May and received a plea deal.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Joseph Charbonneau and Breanne Smith.
Deperna pleaded guilty to Aggravated Vehicular Homicide on Feb. 2 and was sentenced on March 30 by County Court Judge Anthony Molé to a maximum of 18 years and a minimum of 6 years in state prison for causing the death of James Crecco, Sr.

Tendy commended the members of the Sheriff’s Department’s Narcotics Enforcement Unit for their exhaustive efforts in tracking down the vehicle involved, and praised their use of all forms of available technology, as well as the overwhelming amount of manpower, used to make an arrest and bring closure to this case. He also praised the cooperative efforts of the Sheriff’s Department and the Carmel Police Department.

“Everybody collaborated so professionally on this case. From the Sheriff’s office, the Carmel PD, ADA Charbonneau and Smith, and the Crecco family — It was a tremendous effort,” Tendy said. “My heart goes out to the Crecco family and everyone impacted by the tragedies brought about by drunk driving. It’s a stupid and senseless thing to do. There’s no reason for it.”