Guilty Plea After Crash Killed Beloved Hampton Bays Man, Known For Can-Collecting In Community: DA

HAMPTON BAYS, NY — A Southampton man pleaded guilty Wednesday after leaving the scene of a 2024 crash in Hampton Bays that left a pedestrian dead, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Benjamin Sheen-Waltzer, 34, of Southampton, pleaded guilty to the charge of leaving the scene of an incident resulting in death for failing to report the fatal crash, the DA said.

Sheen-Waltzer fatally struck 67-year-old Angel Asitimbay, of Hampton Bays, while Asitimbay walked along the roadway in a residential neighborhood, the DA said.

According to the investigation, on March 6, 2024, at about 5 p.m, Sheen-Waltzer struck Asitimbay with his 2024 GMC pickup truck, Tierney said.

Asitimbay had been walking on a residential roadway while pushing a shopping cart filled with glass bottles and cans, the DA said. Sheen-Waltzer was traveling just south of Neptune Avenue on Springville Road when he struck Asitimbay from behind, the DA said.

Asitimbay was thrown forward, with his body finally coming to rest on the shoulder of the southbound lane, Tierney said. The crash also caused a large debris field of glass bottles and cans to be scattered along the road, the DA said.

Asitimbay was transported to Peconic Bay Medical Center and pronounced deceased shortly after he arrived; after the crash, Sheen-Waltzer fled from the scene, Tierney said.

Among the debris collected at the scene was an "M" that was part of the GMC emblem; that "M" coincided with video surveillance at the Hampton Watercraft & Marine on Springville Road that captured Sheen-Waltzer's vehicle with front end damage, including the missing "M," the DA said.

Southampton police ultimately tracked the 2024 GMC pickup truck to Sheen-Waltzer’s Southampton residence and found it with the "GMC" front emblem missing, the DA said.

Police later located the "G" and "C" parts of the purported emblem at the Sheen-Waltzer's place of employment inside a different vehicle reportedly registered to him, Tierney said.

A search warrant on the GPS device of the 2024 GMC pickup truck revealed data consistent with Sheen-Waltzer's path of travel leading up to and following the deadly hit-and-run crash, the DA said.

On Wednesday, Sheen-Waltzer pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an incident without reporting, a Class D felony, before Acting Supreme Court Justice Anthony S. Senft, Jr., Tierney said.

Sheen-Waltzer is due back in court on November 16, and he is being represented by George Duncan, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Sheen-Waltzer was arrested in November, 2024 in connection with the hit-and-run death, police said.

According to Southampton Town Police Department detectives, he turned himself in to police after an extensive, months'-long investigation.

Asitimbay's death rocked the Hampton Bays community: Many on Facebook mourned Asitimbay, who they remembered as a hardworking man who collected cans around Hampton Bays.

"He was a familiar sight," police said.

Heartbroken community members flooded local Facebook pages in an outpouring of sorrow after they learned that Asitimbay had died.

"He deserved so much better than that. I did not know him, but I had much respect for him and cared," one person wrote. "He was part of this great community and clearly appreciated by many. Praying he is in a better place."

All remembered Asitimbay as a hardworking man, dedicated to his family — and always, with a smile on his face. Some said they saved their cans for him; one said they would sometimes drive him to the supermarket.

Many came forward, offering to assist with funeral expenses.

"He has been a part of Hampton Bays for as long as I can remember. Always a smile on his face. RIP Angel. HB is going to miss you," one person wrote.

Cynthia Goldrick told Patch: "Here is a particularly fond memory. We used to see Angel around town, and when we had full bags at home, we’d ask him to wait while we went back to grab them for him. One day as we were saying good-bye to him, my daughter finished her juice box and ran back to him to hand it over. She didn’t know that it wasn’t redeemable. Angel took it and put it with the cans and gave her the biggest smile and said thank you. Bottom line is, he was a fixture in town — and he will be missed."

Marion Boden agreed: "The man was a fixture in Hampton Bays. Maybe most of us never met him — but we all knew him."

"RIP," another resident wrote. "Your presence did not go unnoticed in our community. You impressed me every day I saw you with that cart of cans. God bless you."

"This defendant cared more about evading responsibility for his criminal actions than rendering aid to the man he struck," Tierney said. "Mr. Asitimbay was left to die on the side of a road with no possible life-saving aid rendered to him. We will continue to hold individuals like this defendant accountable for fatal hit and runs."