Port Jefferson Teen Pleads Guilty in Fatal Centereach Crash While Livestreaming on Instagram and Impaired by Marijuana

CENTEREACH, NY – An 18-year-old Port Jefferson man has pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide and other charges stemming from a 2024 crash in Centereach that killed a 73-year-old woman and seriously injured her passenger while the defendant was driving a stolen vehicle, impaired by marijuana and livestreaming on social media.

Matthew Papile, who was 16 years old at the time of the May 4, 2024 crash, entered the guilty plea Tuesday, September 15, before Acting Supreme Court Justice Karen Kerr, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. Papile was prosecuted as an adult and is expected to receive a prison sentence of six to 18 years.

Prosecutors said Papile was driving a stolen 2008 Land Rover LR2 eastbound on Middle Country Road while livestreaming his driving on Instagram. Investigators later recovered the social media posts, which authorities said documented Papile driving erratically before the fatal collision.

The Land Rover had been reported stolen earlier that day by a Coram resident who told police the vehicle was missing from his driveway.

At approximately 9:10 p.m., prosecutors said Papile first struck the side of another vehicle and continued driving without stopping. He allegedly weaved across eastbound lanes, cut off other motorists and traveled at a high rate of speed before crashing into the rear of a 1994 Toyota Corolla driven by Marion Napolitano, 73.

The impact sent Napolitano’s vehicle off the roadway, where it struck a telephone pole and a tree. Napolitano was transported to Stony Brook University Hospital and was later pronounced dead. A 50-year-old male passenger in her vehicle suffered serious injuries, including a traumatic brain injury, and prosecutors said he continues to suffer from serious injuries more than two years after the crash.

After the collision, the stolen Land Rover spun into the center lane of Middle Country Road. Authorities said Papile got out of the vehicle and ran from the scene, but three people, including an off-duty Suffolk County police officer, chased him and detained him until responding officers arrived.

Police officers who responded to the crash observed signs that Papile was impaired by marijuana, according to prosecutors. Papile admitted smoking marijuana and consented to a blood test. Subsequent toxicology testing detected tetrahydrocannabinol, commonly known as THC, in his system.

Papile pleaded guilty to the following charges:

• Aggravated Vehicular Homicide, a Class B felony;
• Manslaughter in the Second Degree, a Class C felony;
• Aggravated Vehicular Assault, a Class C felony;
• Assault in the Second Degree, a Class D violent felony;
• Leaving the Scene of an Incident Without Reporting Resulting in Death, a Class D felony;
• Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Third Degree, a Class D felony;
• Driving While Impaired by Drugs, an unclassified misdemeanor; and
• Reckless Driving, a traffic infraction.

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney said the guilty plea holds Papile accountable for what prosecutors described as a series of reckless decisions involving a stolen vehicle, drug impairment and dangerous driving that ultimately resulted in Napolitano’s death.

Key Facts and Details

Papile is scheduled to return to court on October 15, 2026, when he is expected to be sentenced to six to 18 years in prison. He is represented by attorney Sean Dixon.