Matt Lauer’s daughter was reportedly caught by Hamptons police for crashing her car into a fence and fleeing the scene over the Fourth of July weekend.
According to Page Six, Romy Lauer, 20, got caught because she left behind the license plate of her Jeep Wrangler, which had fallen off during the fender-bender. This allowed Southampton Town police to identify the daughter of the former Today show host, whom he shares with his ex-wife Annette Roque.
Earlier in the day, Romy and her friends spent part of the holiday weekend partying at Kissaki Sushi in Water Mill, as seen in a TikTok video. By about 4 a.m. on July 5, she was on the road in Southampton.
A resident on North Sea Mecox Road was woken up by a loud bang and called 911, worried that someone was seriously hurt in the crash. When local police arrived, they found a fence and a sign knocked over but no culprit.
@romylauer1 ♬ GENTLEMEN START YOUR ENGINESSS – fierydeltav_
Romy—who studies finance at the University of Miami—had joked about racing a car just hours before smashing her vehicle into the fence and sign, as seen in another TikTok video.
On July 4, Romy and two of her friends mouthed the words to Kevin James’ viral speech at the Daytona 500 in 2007: “I’ve just got three things to say: God bless our troops, God bless America and, gentlemen, start your engines.” Romy enthusiastically delivered the last part of the phrase in the clip, smiling and waving her arms high.
Romy was issued a summons for leaving the scene of an accident and is being represented by top lawyer Edward Burke Jr., who previously defended her father. Burke’s other famous clients include Justin Timberlake, Lizzie Grubman, and Jason Kidd.
On Friday, Aug. 2, Timberlake lost his driving privileges in New York following his latest hearing, stemming from his June 18 DWI arrest, where he failed field sobriety tests and was arrested on suspicion of intoxicated driving in the Hamptons area of Long Island.
Lauer, 66, was fired from the Today show in 2017 over numerous sexual abuse allegations. The former NBC star has maintained that he never assaulted anyone or forced anyone into sex, though he did acknowledge having extramarital encounters.