Daniel Gomez

Introduction

Daniel Gomez is a 65-year-old man from Brentwood, on Long Island, New York, who was arrested on October 6, 2026 and charged with leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash involving a fatality — the charge filed after police said he struck and killed 56-year-old Erik Ermanovics as the man crossed Sunrise Highway in Lindenhurst before dawn, then drove off without calling for help or checking on him. The arrest came hours after the crash, after Suffolk County detectives tracked Gomez to his home. He faces up to seven years in prison if convicted, and was arraigned in Central Islip the day after the crash. The charge carries no finding of guilt: Gomez is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

Background Information

Public reporting contains little about Gomez beyond the arrest record itself: he is 65, lives in Brentwood in Suffolk County, and drove a 2012 Honda Accord, according to police statements carried by local outlets. Nothing in the coverage fetched for this page describes his occupation, family, or any prior record. The case sits in a stretch of Sunrise Highway at North Indiana Avenue in Lindenhurst — a signalized crossing near Babylon Town Hall that residents interviewed after the crash described as unremarkable, with one telling News 12 she did “not typically consider that stretch of road to be especially dangerous.”

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Charged, not adjudicated. Gomez faces a single count of leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash involving a fatality under New York law. The account below is drawn from Suffolk County police statements as reported in press coverage; the charges are allegations, Gomez is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty, and no plea or trial has yet been reported. No attorney for Gomez was named in the coverage at the time of writing.

At about 4:25 a.m. on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, Erik Ermanovics was crossing the westbound side of Sunrise Highway at North Indiana Avenue in Lindenhurst when he was struck by a 2012 Honda Accord driven by Gomez, according to Suffolk County police. The New York Post reported that instead of calling police or helping the man he had struck, Gomez “took off in his 2012 Honda Accord and left his victim lying on the street,” characterizing the departure as recklessly speeding away. Police said Gomez allegedly struck Ermanovics and then fled the scene.

Ermanovics, whom police identified as a 56-year-old homeless man, was transferred to Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip, where he was pronounced dead. Newsday reported the crossing detail the same way — struck on the westbound side at North Indiana Avenue at 4:25 a.m. by a 2012 Honda Accord — and confirmed via police that Gomez fled in his vehicle. It was not clear from the coverage how much time passed between the crash and first responders arriving. The crash shut Sunrise Highway in both directions for most of the morning; the roadway reopened around 1 p.m. Police did not say how detectives identified Gomez or whether the Honda was recovered.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The immediate consequence was the arrest: after what the New York Post called a brief investigation, Suffolk County detectives located Gomez at his Brentwood home later the same day and took him into custody, charging him with leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash involving a fatality — a felony carrying up to seven years in prison upon conviction. He was held overnight at the Suffolk Police Third Precinct and arraigned Wednesday in Suffolk First District Court in Central Islip. Police also put out the standing request that anyone with information call Crime Stoppers, with tips leading to an arrest eligible for rewards up to $5,000. Area residents interviewed at the cordoned scene expressed shock that someone had died at the crossing.

Current Status

As of October 7, 2026, Gomez has been charged but not tried: the single felony count of leaving the scene of a crash involving a fatality is pending, the arraignment at First District Court in Central Islip was scheduled for the day after his arrest, and no plea, bail ruling, or trial date appears in the fetched coverage. Ermanovics’ death certificate facts — struck at roughly 4:25 a.m., pronounced dead at Good Samaritan University Hospital — are a matter of police record, while Gomez’s culpability remains for the courts. The coverage does not name an attorney for him, and the New York Post reporting did not indicate that he has commented.

Impact on Their Career/Life

Whatever the outcome of the criminal case, the arrest is now the public record defining Gomez: a 65-year-old Brentwood resident charged with fleeing a crash that killed a homeless man on Sunrise Highway, covered by the New York Post under a headline about a “geezer busted” and carried across Long Island local outlets. A conviction on the charge carries up to seven years in prison; an acquittal would leave the crash itself — and Ermanovics’ death — still a matter of record, with the question of who was driving unresolved publicly unless the case answers it. For Ermanovics’ part, the hit-and-run ended the life of a 56-year-old homeless man whose identity police released, and whose death investigators are still asking the public to help reconstruct through the Crime Stoppers tip line.

Sources

New York Post, “Long Island geezer busted in deadly hit-and-run of homeless man on Sunrise Highway: cops,” Oct. 7, 2026 — source
Greater Long Island, “Man killed crossing Sunrise Highway in Lindenhurst hit-and-run, driver arrested,” Oct. 6, 2026 — source
Newsday, “Daniel Gomez charged in Sunrise Highway fatal hit-and-run in Lindenhurst,” Oct. 6, 2026 — source
News 12 Long Island, “Driver arrested after fatal hit-and-run on Sunrise Highway in North Lindenhurst,” Oct. 6, 2026 — source