A Dunkin’ Donuts property at 281 Walt Whitman Road in Huntington Station sold for $2.2 million to franchisee 281 Capital Partners LLC.
David Winzelberg
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An accused hit-and-run driver estimated he was going more than twice the speed limit when he fatally struck a construction worker on a Queens expressway — because he was hungry and anxious to get to Dunkin’ Donuts, according to prosecutors who have charged him with manslaughter.
Daveanand Budhai incriminated himself in a lengthy statement after the Friday morning wreck on the Nassau Expressway near JFK Airport in South Ozone Park that killed 44-year-old Isabel Alvarez, prosecutors say.
He was driving with a suspended license when he crashed, authorities charge, striking the victim so hard she flew 168 feet through the air.
“To be honest, I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings,” Budhai told police, according to the criminal complaint against him. “I (had) just woke up. I was in a rush. I was in a rush because I wanted to get something to eat from Dunkin’ Donuts.”
Budhai, 25, was arraigned Saturday in Queens Criminal Court on charges including manslaughter, assault and leaving the scene of a fatal accident. He was ordered held on $500,000 bond.
Alvarez, who often told her mother how much she feared reckless drivers on the job, was covering a vacationing co-worker’s shift when she killed about 7:25 a.m. She lived in the Longwood section of the Bronx.
“This is too much for my heart. I can’t believe it,” her sobbing mother said Saturday. “My family is broken-hearted.”
She was struck while standing in a safety zone flagging cars between the exit ramp and the eastbound lanes of the Nassau Expressway near the Van Wyck Expressway, cops said.
Budhai was driving a 2018 Infiniti Q50S despite a suspended license, according to the complaint. He was about a mile from home when he crashed.
The speed limit was marked at 25 mph and the left lane of the two-lane exit ramp was blocked off with traffic drums. Alvarez wore a fluorescent safety vest and a hard hat, holding a “stop/slow” sign to direct motorists and the scene was clearly marked a construction zone, the complaint describes.
Budhai told police he was going at least 60 mph and knew he was heading into a construction zone but didn’t expect anyone to be working in it, he told police.
“The cause of the crash was my speed,” he told cops, according to the criminal complaint. “I know I was accelerating. I was speeding. I know I was speeding.”
He swerved left to avoid getting onto the Van Wyck, hit several traffic drums, and slammed into Alvarez, launching her 168 feet, according to the complaint. She landed on the shoulder of the road.
“I never saw her or the construction until the last minute,” he said, according to the complaint. “I did not get into the left lane earlier because there were cars. At that time, traffic was pretty good and there wasn’t much cars on the road. Yeah, it would be fair to say I had plenty of time to get over to the left.”
Budhai kept driving for more than a mile before pulling partially onto a sidewalk at 134th St. and South Conduit Ave., according to the complaint.
There, he stepped out of his vehicle to survey the severe front-end damage to his car, the complaint said. His windshield was shattered and partially knocked out, the front side bumper and hood were damaged. The interior of the vehicle was also damaged, with blood and glass inside the car, according to the complaint.
“I hit a barrel and that is when I blacked out. It was an accident but intentionally I was speeding. I left because I was nervous. I got nervous but my intent was to get back there to find out what happened,” he said, according to the complaint. “When I hit the barrel, the windscreen broke … I wasn’t trying to evade anything.”
Medics took Budhai to Jamaica Hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries to his right hand.
Alvarez died at the scene.
A member of the Excavators Union Local 731, she was working on a New York State Department of Transportation project as a contractor, according to posts online.
She had worked in construction for about 15 years and was in the process of building her mother a vacation house in El Salvador, where the family is originally from.
“She’s a very, very good daughter. Working hard. Everybody loved her,” her mother said. “She’s a sweet, sweet lady. At her job, everybody cry.”
Budhai’s driving record shows his license has been suspended seven times, most recently in April 2024, prosecutors say.
“The defendant was ignoring the laws of the road, speeding and using a construction zone as his personal shortcut when his actions took the life of the worker,” Queens D.A. Melinda Katz said.
Budhai is due back in court Wednesday. His lawyer declined a request for comment.
With Rebecca White
The news, even that about another Bills playoff loss, doesn’t need to be complicated or confusing; that’s what any new release from Microsoft is for. And, as in the case with anything from Microsoft, to keep the news from worrying our pretty little heads over, remember something new and equally indecipherable will come out soon:
Really all you need to do is follow one simple rule: barely pay attention and jump to conclusions. So, here are some headlines today and my first thoughts:
Luckily for Mahomes, most missed him ‘wide right.’
Adding: ‘And make Mars pay for it!’
I’m guessing they’re confusing it with magic genes.
So, someone we forgot about is for someone we never heard of!
… Ironically, showing his patriotism by shooting himself ‘down under.’
Although it’s making them so boring, look for them to be called Gen Zzzzzzzz.
One wears too much makeup, dyes their hair, lies about their weight, and the other is Nikki Haley.
… In fairness, probably just the toilet getting even.
At that age, you might want to change your name to ‘Middle Aged Elevator Music.’
The last time the outside of the Capitol was that white was during the January 6 insurrection!
You’d think a b%$w job would be more appropriate.
It’ll give you quite a headache.
Man, that took a pair of deflated balls from owner Bob Kraft.
Who?
Paul Lander
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An employee told the man that they were aware of the “problem with the toilet” since there had been previous incidents, the lawsuit says.
Free is free.
William Charles
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Useful for the dunkin fans.
Hat tip to Ropps
William Charles
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By .
Ben Affleck showed off his rapping skills in the latest Dunkin’ ad.
The commercial premiered on Tuesday during the 2023 MTV VMAs, with the clip starring Ice Spice, promoting the new Ice Spice Munchkins Drink.
Affleck told the camera, “Things with Dunkin’ are going well. Big promotion. Made me brand ambassador.”
READ MORE:
Ben Affleck Surprises Even More Dunkin’ Donuts Customers In Super Bowl Ad Outtakes
The “Air” actor then sat across from Ice Spice, questioning the rapper when discussing possible drink names: “How are people going to connect you with Dunkin’?”
“I’m a Dunkin’ girl,” she insisted, as Affleck responded, “I’m not seeing it.”
READ MORE:
Ben Affleck And Jennifer Lopez Team Up In Dunkin’ Donuts Super Bowl Ad
“Ice Spice. My fans are the munchkins,” she said, suggesting: “Ice Spice Munchkins drink.”
Affleck appeared to ignore the idea, insisting: “We’ll call it Vanilla Ice spice,” before launching into a rap as the unimpressed musician stared at him.
The new drink — which has been unveiled for pumpkin spice season — will be available now through Oct. 31.
Becca Longmire
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America might run on Dunkin’ but for one disgruntled customer, it seems as though she’s better suited to run on … paper?
One TikToker is going viral after visiting a Cleveland-area Dunkin Donuts and allegedly receiving a grilled cheese that allegedly was served to her with a piece of paper in between two slices of bread.
“I’ve been craving grilled cheese all day. It’s all I’ve been thinking about,” the TikToker Miya says in the clip. “So I just left work and made a run of desperation to Dunkin’ to get a grilled cheese.”
@miyaacacia The paper is my favorite part !! @dunkin ♬ original sound – Miya
She tells viewers how she was “so excited” to “smash” the sandwich but then held up what appears to be a grilled cheese sandwich with paper wrapping sitting on the inside, and the cheese not even melted.
The clip, which has been viewed over 164,500 times, garnered a slew of reactions in the customer’s comment section, with many telling her that she should’ve gone to rival chain Starbucks instead.
“I’m no chef, but I’m pretty sure that’s wrong,” one user joked.
“This feels like the start to a villain arc,” another said.
The TikToker appeared to be in good spirits — and even confirmed in the comments that she did, in fact, go home and heat up the sandwich herself before eating it.
That’s one way to be resourceful!
Dunkin’ has not yet commented on the alleged incident.
Emily Rella
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Dunkin’ has released outtakes from its hidden camera-style Super Bowl ad starring Ben Affleck. The Bostonian helped the chain strike gold with their first ever Super Bowl ad, and now, coffee and donut enthusiasts everywhere can see what didn’t make the cut.
“It’s Boston, after all, so we had some rather coarse and agitated people who were willing to voice their displeasure in a colorful way, and I’m still lobbying to include the most interesting of those in some of the edgiest social spots,” Affleck told the Wall Street Journal.
It looks like his wish came true.
The original ad, which was directed by the star’s production company, featured Affleck working the drive-thru window in Medford, Massachusetts, taking orders and selfies with customers. At the end of the commercial, Affleck’s wife, Jennifer Lopez, pays him a visit.
“Is this what you do when you say you’re going to work all day?” she asks incredulously, before reminding her husband to grab her a glazed donut on his way out.
The outtakes are a little raunchier, with Affleck telling one customer in an exaggerated Boston accent that the chain is out of both coffee and donuts.
“What do you got?”
“Ah, water,” says Affleck, as the customer elicits an expletive.
“I’m trying to compensate with comedy for my ineptitude,” the star responds.
Affleck also tells customers that they have to take the Dunkin’ Run deal, which the ad is promoting, running through the menu at such speed that a customer asks him, “Are you alright this morning?”
“Malfunction!” Affleck screams in another scene, angrily pressing on the touchscreen point of service system. “It’s not as easy as it looks,” he adds.
Even so, Dunkin’ stands by the actor’s performance, which just might be his greatest yet.
“We thought, ‘who better to represent [our menu] than the ultimate Dunkin’ runner, Ben Affleck?’” said Dunkin’ chief marketing officer, Jill McVicar Nelson, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
“I’m not your typical Dunkin’ technician,” Affleck says in closing. “Usually, they’re much smarter than me.”
A Dunkin’ Super Bowl commercial might not have happened without one of the eponymous chain’s celebrity fans: Bostonian and actor Ben Affleck, who directed and starred in this year’s “Dunkin’ ‘Drive-Thru’ Starring Ben.”
The chain — who is apparently on a first name basis with Affleck — enlisted the star’s help in making their first-ever Super Bowl ad after seeing viral footage of him working the drive-thru at a Dunkin’ in Medford, Massachusetts.
“We thought, who better to represent [our menu] than the ultimate Dunkin’ runner, Ben Affleck?” said Dunkin’ chief marketing officer, Jill McVicar Nelson, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
The ad featured Affleck working the drive-thru window, taking orders and selfies with paying customers. At the end of the commercial, Affleck’s wife, singer Jennifer Lopez, pays him a visit.
“Is this what you do when you say you’re going to work all day?” she asks incredulously, before reminding her husband to grab her a glazed donut on his way out.
Fans immediately took to social media, where previous footage of Affleck with Dunkin’ coffee has gone viral.
“All was leading Ben Affleck to this moment, his destiny had come true,” wrote one user.
“As someone who has an album named ‘runs on dunkin’ filled with photos of Ben Affleck and his iced [Dunkin’], I needed that commercial,” wrote another.
Dunkin’ originally pitched an idea that involved Affleck paying a visit to the corporate boardroom, but he suggested an unscripted piece instead. Artists Equity, Affleck’s production company, filmed both.
Leading up to the commercial’s debut, the company teased it both on Twitter, and in stores. On Sunday morning, the company tweeted: “felt cute, might have Ben Affleck in our commercial later.”
“The way sneaker heads feel about exclusive shoe drops is how I feel about the Ben Affleck Dunkin drop,” wrote one user, after a sign on one of the digital menus read, “Something’s Ben Brewing,” with the date of the Super Bowl underneath.
While some were excited to see a familiar face promoting Dunkin’s breakfast value menu, some were less pleased. While Affleck’s heavy Boston accent did not feel to disappoint, his customer service might have.
“It’s Boston, after all, so we had some rather coarse and agitated people who were willing to voice their displeasure in a colorful way, and I’m still lobbying to include the most interesting of those in some of the edgiest social spots,” Affleck told the WSJ.
Dunkin’ said some scenes that did not make the final cut will be promoted on the company’s social media channels instead.
A Dunkin’ spokesperson said that the chain will also be airing the scripted ad in the coming weeks.
