A drunken-driving suspect, accused of killing a pretty coed in a horrific crash on Staten Island, tried to hang himself in his jail cell as he awaited a court hearing, authorities said yesterday.
John Sambuco, 21, took off the hospital gown he was wearing, tied it around his neck and fastened it to the bars of his cell in the 120th Precinct station house in St. George, at about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, police sources said.
An officer caught Sambuco in the act during a routine prisoner check, and pulled him down.
Sambuco suffered only a minor injury to his neck and was treated at a hospital. He was later taken to Bellevue Hospital for a psychological examination.
The suicide bid canceled an arraignment hearing set for yesterday morning, when Sambuco was expected to be formally charged with manslaughter for killing 18-year-old Mariana Edkins in the booze-fueled crash.
The accident occurred at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday on Woodrow Road, when Sambuco swerved his Ford Explorer into the path of a Hyundai, in which Edkins was a passenger, police said. The Hyundai’s driver, Josephine DiDonato, 18, was injured.
Yesterday, pals gathered at DiDonato’s bedside at Staten Island University North Hospital, where they prayed and reminisced about Edkins, a College of Staten Island freshman.
john.doyle@nypost.com