Hudson Valley Man Arrested for Assault With Champagne Bottle

Police say a bottle of bubbly was used as a weapon by a Hudson Valley man just after the ball dropped on New Year's Eve.

According to authorities, Justin Cudak from Highland Mills spent his first few hours of 2017 in police custody after a violent New Year's toast ended in a car chase and arrest. Monroe police say they responded to a report of an assault at the La Vera Cucina Restaurant on Hillside Terrace at around 3:30 am on January 1.

When officers arrived at the scene they found a man with a large laceration on his head. Police interviewed witnesses who claimed that Cudak had hit the man in the head several times with a champagne bottle.

Whether the suspect was still shaken up over Mariah Carey's Times Square meltdown or just fed up with how awful 2016 was we're not quite sure. But police say Cudak was so enraged that he refused to pull over when officers finally found him driving his Chevy pick-up near Mapes Place.

After failing to stop his car, police say they pursued Cudak to the entrance of Smith's Clove Park where he was removed from his vehicle and questioned by officers. Police determined that Cudak had not only committed the assault with a champagne bottle, but was also driving drunk.

The 25-year-old partygoer was charged with Assault, Criminal Possession of a Weapon, DWI, Refusal to Commit to a Chemical Test and several traffic violations.