What Happened
A Lyft driver called 911 at approximately 9:30 p.m. Sunday, September 6, after his passenger brandished what appeared to be a handgun out of the vehicle window and dry-fired it during a ride from Sag Harbor to a residence in Noyac, according to Southampton Town Police. The driver reported the passenger was highly intoxicated throughout the ride.
After the driver dropped the man off at the Noyac residence, the situation escalated. The passenger pointed the apparent handgun directly at the driver through the vehicle window, then fired multiple rounds into the air while standing in the driveway, per Patch. The driver left the scene. The man walked into the residence.
Southampton Town police patrol officers and Community Response Unit officers arrived and immediately evacuated nearby residences as a precaution, police said. The department’s drone unit, Emergency Services Unit, detectives, and crisis negotiators also responded. Suffolk County Sheriff’s K-9 assisted at the scene.
Officers established that the man was inside with three other individuals. All three were safely evacuated from the residence. The man was then taken into custody without further incident, police said.
Detectives obtained and executed a search warrant at the residence. The search turned up an imitation handgun and ammunition, according to Patch. The item Santos had brandished and fired during the ride was the imitation firearm, not a functional weapon.
Patrick Santos, 34, of New Jersey, was arrested and charged with second-degree menacing, a misdemeanor, and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a misdemeanor. He was transported to Southampton Town police headquarters and held for morning arraignment.
Location & Road Context
The ride originated in Sag Harbor and terminated at a residence in Noyac, a rural hamlet on the North Sea side of Southampton Town in Suffolk County. Noyac sits along Noyac Road between North Haven and North Sea, a stretch with limited street lighting and residential properties set back from the road — conditions that informed the decision to evacuate neighboring homes during the standoff.
Southampton Town covers a large geographic area on the South Fork. Incidents in Noyac fall under Southampton Town Police jurisdiction, not Village or Suffolk County Police. Anyone traveling the Sag Harbor corridor on the East End should be aware that ride-share pickups in that area are handled under that jurisdiction.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
Santos faces two misdemeanor counts: second-degree menacing under New York Penal Law § 120.14 and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon under PL § 265.01. Both charges reflect the imitation-firearm finding; New York law treats criminal possession of an imitation pistol as a misdemeanor weapon charge when used to threaten. Santos was held overnight at Southampton Town police headquarters for arraignment the morning of Monday, September 7, 2026.
Anyone with information about the incident can contact the Southampton Town Police Department detective division at 631-728-3400, the Tips Hotline at 631-728-3454, or by email at crimetips@southamptontownny.gov.
Broader Impact
Under New York Penal Law § 265.01(1), possession of an imitation firearm in a manner that puts another person in reasonable fear of physical injury carries misdemeanor exposure. Santos also faces the second-degree menacing count specifically because he pointed the weapon at the Lyft driver through the vehicle window — a direct threat to an identifiable individual. A conviction on either charge carries up to one year in jail.