Police say the first incident happened on Jan. 20 in Locust Valley. Three days later, the same thing happened on William Road in North Massapequa, and again on Jan. 28 the thieves struck again in East Meadow.  The most recent incident happened on Tuesday in Massapequa on Division Avenue.

Joe Batista says he locked up his jet ski, but did not anticipate it being towed right off his driveway.

“I work very hard for what I have and then I get to watch it on camera,” said Batista. “Watch them take my stuff. It felt horrible. I felt defiled.”

Security camera footage from cameras on the street show individuals getting out of the U-Haul to hitch the jet ski to the truck and then calmly driving away. This occurred around 3 a.m., when most were sleeping.

David Gottlieb, of North Massapequa, said his jet ski was also stolen in the dead of night. He did not even know until he looked out his window. His security cameras also showed a U-Haul truck driving away.

“I don’t expect to get it back,” said Gottlieb. “This was so violating, unfortunately it’s a loss to me.” 

Nassau Police declined to comment but said there are some steps owners can take to secure their jet skis, like putting it behind a fenced in area, blocking the jet ski with a car to make it harder to steal, and to call police if they see or hear anything suspicious.

Batista just bought the jet ski for his kids to enjoy this summer. He hopes police will be able to locate it.

“Hopefully they will get them, I’m sure [the theives] will mess up soon,” said Batista. “And remember, it’s a U-Haul truck. So if anybody sees a U-Haul truck driving around at 3:15 in the morning, call the police.”

Joseph Rubino, of College Point was charged Wednesday with criminal possession of stolen property and other crimes, including unlawful possession of personal identification and a skimmer following a vehicle stop Tuesday — after he was arrested following a traffic stop.

Old Westbury police say they identified the minivan he was driving as one reported stolen in Suffolk County a month prior and coordinated the stop.

Later, while processing Rubino and the vehicle, investigators allege they found New York state driver’s licenses in various people’s names, a credit card skimming device and debit cards in multiple names.

Police believe Rubino used a website and cryptocurrency to illegally buy the personal information of unsuspecting victims, targeting those with high credit scores who live in affluent areas. He allegedly used the information to get driver’s licenses, and then open new lines of credit, in the victims’ names. He bought cellphones on those credit lines, police allege, and resold them via an online app, authorities say.

Investigators say victims may not yet be aware they’ve been victimized. The Old Westbury Police Department is working with other law enforcement agencies to identify any potential victims. They didn’t provide a total estimate.

Police say the booking process also yielded a “quantity of substances” that field-tested positive as fentanyl and methamphetamine. Rubino faces multiple counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in addition to the other charges.

Information on a possible attorney for him wasn’t immediately available. Rubino is expected to be arraigned Thursday.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman announced the new ban at a Thursday morning press conference. It will take effect immediately.

“There’s too much bullying going on of biological males trying to inject themselves in female sports,” Blakeman said, surrounded by supporters and young girls. “It’s wrong and it’s a form of bullying.”

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The executive order bars transgender athletes from competing against girls at all 100 sports facilities run by Nassau County, including ball fields and ice rinks. It is believed to be the first ban on transgender participation in sports on a county-wide level in the U.S.

“This is a matter that concerns the integrity, fairness and safety of women’s sports,” said Samantha Goetz, a former high school athlete and current county legislator. The mother of two argued it’s a matter of fairness for female athletes, who can’t compete physically with biological males.

“There is no training I could have engaged in to compete against a biological male,” Goetz said.

Blakeman argued that transgender athletes don’t belong on the same field as girls, adding that he has been considering instituting the ban for months.

When asked by reporters what spurred such a ban to be enacted, Blakeman could cite no examples of such a thing occurring in Nassau County. Neither could the executive director of the agency that oversees high school sports in the county.

“We have not had any issues with transgender athletes participating in section 8 athletics…no complaints, and I’m not sure that there are any,” noted Pat Pizzarelli, of the Nassau County Public High School Athletic Association.

Protestors outside the county office building condemned Blakeman’s action as illegal, discriminatory and unnecessary. They accused Blakeman of playing politics with the lives of vulnerable transgender kids.

A former high school athlete from Suffolk County who is now transitioning to become a woman said such a ban would take away any sense of community and cohesion for transgender athletes.

“We lose learning about each other and how to become closer,” the individual said. “There’s no reason to separate us and create division.”

LGBT Network CEO Robert Vitelli said the order “sends a message to trans kids that they don’t belong.”

A legal challenge is expected, but an unapologetic Blakeman believes his executive order will withstand any test.

“I know of no policy in the state to strike that down and I would encourage all elected officials to join us to protect girls and women,” Blakeman said. “Probably if you polled most women athletes, they would be 100% behind us.”

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul weighed in later Thursday, accusing Blakeman of bullying transgender kids and saying her office would enforce state laws designed to protect children. That message was echoed by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who said her office is reviewing the state’s legal options.

“This executive order is transphobic and deeply dangerous. In New York, we have laws that protect our beautifully diverse communities from hate and discrimination of any and every kind,” James said in a statement.

Under the plea agreement, Nylah Frazier copped to manslaughter and assault in the violent West Hempstead crash in exchange for lesser jail time. The plea deal gives her three to nine years in jail. She had faced up to 15 years in prison if convicted of the top charge she was arraigned on, which included two counts of second-degree manslaughter.

Frazier was 18 when she drove her BMW more than 100 miles an hour through a stop sign and slammed into a truck, according to prosecutors. Her two passengers — Amanda Arguinzoni, 17, and Kurtis Caesar, 19 — were thrown from the car on impact and died instantly, court records say.

At the time of their deaths, Arguinzoni was a senior at West Hempstead High School. Caesar had recently graduated from Cambria Height Academy in Queens and worked for FedEx.

When Frazier’s lawyer tried to address the victims’ families at Thursday’s plea hearing, shouts of anger echoed through the courtroom. The two families had to be separated by court officers.

The district attorney was clear on where she stood.

“Two young people – 17 and 19 years old – were killed when this defendant blew through a red light at more than 100 miles an hour and crashed her BMW SUV into a parked dump truck,” Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a statement. “Amanda Arguinzoni and Kurtis Caesar had their entire lives in front of them and lost those lives in an instant due to the selfish and reckless actions of Nylah Frazier. It is a miracle that no one else lost their lives that evening. We continue to express our condolences to the Arguinzoni and Caesar families.”

Frazier left court free on bail until her May sentencing.

The violent incident occurred around 1 p.m. Sunday, when Aleksandr Binyaminov heard his Ring doorbell go off and saw a random stranger walking away from his Hewlett house with two of his flags. One was was an Israeli-American flag and another one said “We Stand with Israel.”

“When I grabbed the flag away from him, he was saying ‘I’m from Palestine, you Jews are killing Palestinians,'” Binyaminov recalled.

The man, who police have identified as 26-year-old Bechir Lehbeib, walked away from Binyaminov and made an obscene gesture on video. Lehbeib had walked several houses away when Binyaminov caught up to him on his child’s bicycle.

On video, Binyaminov confronts Lehbeib who punches him in the head. The two then begin to fight.

“He punched me in the face gave me black and blue put me in a choke hold and he headbutted me, that’s how I got a black eye,” Binyaminov explained.

The flag was put up after Oct. 7, in honor of a relative of Binyaminov’s wife who he said died when Hamas attacked Israel.

“The subject continued to swing wildly and struggle with the victim and threw the victim to the ground,” said Nassau County Deputy Police Commissioner Kevin Smith.

In regards to the incident, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said simply, “This insanity has to stop.”

At a news conference, the county executive and Republican elected officials blasted border policies for the incident.

“Living in America, I never thought this would happen to me. As a Jew, we live here happily. Feels a little bit disgusting that this happened to us, these hate crimes should be stopped,” said Binyaminov.

Lehbeig was ordered held on $50,000 bail and the judge agreed with prosecutors when they asked that his passport be taken away.

Roberto Velasquez pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in the deadly March 2023 attack at the 24-hour laundromat in Valley Stream, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said Wednesday. The 32-year-old Velasquez is expected to be sentenced to more than 21 years in prison at his next court appearance on March 15 — a year and a day after he killed Michael Oliver.

Donnelly detailed the attack that broke out around 2 a.m. after an argument erupted between the two men who had been sleeping overnight at the laundromat on Merrick Road. The pair were sitting next to each other and started arguing, which is when Velasquez got up, reached for a duffle bag and hit Oliver with the bag.

The contents of the bag spilled to the floor, revealing the large machete that had been in the bag. Velasquez grabbed the weapon and swung it at Oliver twice, then paused, and then cut him in his left leg just above the knee, according to the charges.

The 58-year-old Oliver fell to the ground, bleeding profusely, the DA said. He was taken to North Shore University Hospital-Manhasset where he underwent emergency surgery. He survived the surgery, but suffered major organ damage due to the blood loss and an infection. He died 10 days later.

Velasquez gathered his things and ran from the laundromat, but was arrested by Nassau County police later that same day in Lynbrook.

Attorney information for Velasquez wasn’t immediately available.

The robbers struck the home in North Hills after 11 a.m., posing as workers who needed access to the house. A 69-year-old woman was inside with her 35-year-old aide, who cracked the door open.

“He just opened the door a little bit, [asked] ‘What do you want?'” said the still-shaken victim, who did not wish to be identified and spoke to NBC New York through her doorbell system. “And they put a gun to his head and they came up to my room.”

Once inside, the men took the victims’ cellphones and pushed the woman to the ground, covering her mouth.

“They were saying they didn’t want to hurt me but I just kept screaming his name, Jesus’s name,” the woman said. “As a Christian I was screaming ‘Jesus help me, Jesus help me!'”

The aide locked himself in a room and started screaming out the window for help. A neighbor heard the screams.

“I heard a male voice screaming over and over again,” said neighbor Qicheng Yang. “Anyone’s gonna call police or anyone’s gonna call police for me.”

The Yang family has lived on Folie Court for a decade, saying that it’s usually safe — but in the past two years, they have noticed a change in Nassau County. The district attorney said criminals are getting bolder, and residents need to become more aware.

“If you’re not sure make a phone call, call the gas company and say ‘Did you send someone to my house for a gas leak?'” said District Attorney Anne Donnelly, who also recommended installing a camera to talk to anyone at the door.

Because of the screams, the three men ran away before they could take anything.

Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to contact police.

As part of the stunning find in the North Bellmore home of 32-year-old Matthew Spohrer, the Nassau County SPCA confiscated a young South American ostrich, otherwise known as a rhea, named Eddie.

How did Eddie end up at the home? Ebay, apparently.

“He actually said that he ordered the rhea on Ebay as an egg when he was drunk. This was a stupid mistake,” said John Di Leonardo, an anthrozoologist and the executive director of Humane Long Island. “[Spohrer’s] been seen and photographed numerous times with this rhea in public, taking it to the fair, train stations, pet stores.”

A tip led authorities to the family home on Tuesday, where the exotic animals were allegedly found packed in cages. A flock of ducks, quails and chickens were allegedly kept next to reptiles, including an endangered tiger salamander and a variety of lizards, snakes and turtles. Spohrer allegedly planned to feed the quails to the reptiles.

“Baby quails certainly don’t belong housed right next to lizards and snakes causing them extreme stress,” Di Leonardo said.

According to Humane Long Island, people spotted Spohrer and his illegal menagerie at the annual Bellmore Family Street Festival.

“He was charging people to go into a tent to see these animals and pet some of them,” said Di Leonardo.

Spohrer was hit with 30 violations and fined thousands of dollars by the SPCA, which confiscated all of the animals. A giant African snail, a North American opossum, a tortoise, two prairie dogs and large monitor lizards were among the animals taken away, along with dozens of chickens, domestic ducks and geese.

“I think that this is what happens when people don’t speak up. it ends up being a hoarding situation,” Di Leonardo said. “Hoarding giant birds, prairie dogs, and endangered species in a cramped basement or backyard shed is cruel, and keeping them in cages next to their natural predators can cause them extreme stress. Simply speaking, wild animals are not pets.”

All will be heading to sanctuaries, including Eddie the rhea, which will grow to be three feet tall with six-inch talons.

A disgraced Long Island doctor was sentenced to possibly more than a decade in prison after five of his patients died as a result of him over-prescribing opioids while he worked from his car.

George Blatti, 78, was sentenced to five to 15 years behind bars after pleading guilty in October to five counts of manslaughter as part of a plea deal made with prosecutors. He initially faced five counts of second-degree murder and 11 counts of reckless endangerment.

Between 2016 and 2018, five of Blatti’s patients died of drug overdoses. Prosecutors said he wrote thousands of opioid prescriptions inside an old electronics store and from inside his car, handing out pill indiscriminately — and often with no medical exam — as he used his prescription pad and a killing tool.

The alleged victims — three men and two women, all between the ages of 30-60 — were prescribed 45,000 pills over a four-year time frame, even though prosecutors said each showed clear signs of addiction. In one case, it was said that Blatti prescribed the victim nine times the daily maximum recommended dosage of opioids.

Additionally, prosecutors say that in some cases, he allegedly prescribed opioid painkillers at patients’ request to other individuals he had never met or spoken to.

It was at this office that Blatti allegedly met customers though 2019, according to the original indictment. After he lost access to that space, he allegedly saw patients in his car, prescribing medications with no examination from the parking lots of the Rockville Centre hotel — where he lived — and a nearby Dunkin’ Donuts, prosecutors say.

Blatti allegedly used paper prescriptions pursuant to a waiver issued by the New York State Health Commissioner at the time, allowing him to avoid using the state’s secure electronic prescription system. This system is generally required, and provides for greater oversight.

“In the face of that tragedy, my client did the only thing he could which was plead guilty and accept responsibility and punishment,” said Blatti’s attorney after the sentencing.

Blatti again told the judge that he accepted responsibility for what he did.

But the families of three victims had the last word in court Monday, and were not nearly as sympathetic to Blatti’s defense, calling the former doctor an animal and a murderer who chose financial gain over human life.

“He’s a piece of garbage. I’m a nurse. He’s no doctor,” said Sandra Kinzer, whose 44-year-old brother Michael died two days after receiving a pain prescription from the then-Great Neck doctor.

Valerie Kinzer told NBC New York she believes Blatti feels no remorse for the death of her husband and the others. The families said they were not happy with the plea deal, but were willing to accept it.

“I have to get on with my life I have two boys to raise and that’s most important,” said Valerie Kinzer.

The Simplex NYC store in Wantagh was stocked full of limited edition sneakers and clothing when the alleged burglars struck over the holiday weekend. Security video from just before 5 a.m. Monday showed a grey BMW SUV pull up to the shop on Merrick Road, and then a minute later, smash into the front window.

Soon after, another SUV drove up to the scene, the criminal complaint stated. Four men ran into the store, grabbed whatever clothing and expensive sneakers they could and ran off, video showed. The suspects were seen carrying off Nike and Air Jordan boxes during the theft that went on for nearly eight minutes.

The men fled after spotting flashing police lights. One of the SUVs struck a police cruiser as the burglars were making their escape. The officer driving the cruiser was taken to Nassau University Medical Center after suffering neck pain as a result of the crash, according to the criminal complaint.

Police tracked one of the vehicles from the brazen heist to North Bellmore. That’s where 19-year-old Christopher Flores and a 16-year-old boy were arrested. Flores, of Holbrook, was charged with second-degree burglary and fourth-degree possession of stolen property.

The criminal complaint stated that $50,000 in merchandise was stolen from the store.

In addition to the theft at the Nassau County store, the criminal complaint said the BMW used in the burglary had been reported stolen from a Connecticut home on Jan. 6.

Police have not shared any information regarding additional arrests.

The same sneaker store was burglarized in the same manner on Saturday morning around the same time. Security video shows an SUV backing into the store and multiple people from it grabbing clothing. The store owner also confirmed to NBC New York he was first burglarized on Saturday morning.

When asked, Nassau Police say they have no record of the first incident on Saturday.

It was not immediately clear if that one was carried out by the same group of suspects as the Monday burglary.

The owner of Simplex NYC did not wish to speak to NBC New York on-camera. The store was emptied out by the owner after the burglary, and the front of it was boarded up on Tuesday.

Bail was set at $25,000 cash or $50,000 bond for Flores, who is due back in court later in the week.

Police said a 2019 Audi Q7 was stolen Saturday night from a shopping center at 417 S. Oyster Bay Road while a 48-year-old woman was asleep in the backseat.

The woman’s husband and another man had parked in the parking lot for The French Workshop bakery and had gone inside leaving the car idling. At that point, a man got in the Audi and started to drive away waking the woman in the backseat only once the car started using its brakes, police said.

The thief noticed the woman in the rear seat, displayed a knife and demanded she exit the car, according to police.

Police said the woman got out of the car, which left the area heading north on S. Oyster Bay Road.

No one was injured in the incident.

Police said the investigation was ongoing.

A 2-year-old dog on Long Island miraculously survived being stabbed 17 times in a heinous animal abuse case, and law enforcement is looking for the suspects who may be responsible for the cruelty.

A woman claimed to have found the young pup, a 75-pound terrier mix that has since been named Cornell, badly injured as he bled on a street in Freeport, according to Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. The woman took the pooch to a dog rescue operation and then to the Hempstead animal shelter, where he received the necessary medical attention to help save his life.

It was not clear what was used to hurt the dog, but Donnelly said a “sharp object” was used in the Nov. 27 incident. The dog was found with no collar and no identification chip. There was no evidence he was part of any dog-fighting ring.

Cornell survived the stabbings and is recovering at the animal shelter — a development the shelter’s acting director called “amazing,” especially considering the extent of the abuse. He will be heading home with a foster family in the coming days.

“I don’t know how anyone could continue to hurt a dog or any animal really, but it was pretty jarring to see,” said Ashley Behrens.

The DA said there were no suspects currently in the attack and had no theories on what might have happened or led to the dog being abused so mercilessly. Donnelly said they are seeking the public’s help to find out what happened to Cornell, and the county’s chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was offering a $5,000 reward for any information.

“I believe this was somebody’s pet. He’s too healthy and in too good shape to have been a street dog,” said Donnelly, who added that the woman who found the dog is not considered a suspect. “We need the public’s health to help us find who did this to Cornell.”

Police were called to the All in One shop on Merrick Road in Oceanside around 1 p.m. Sunday after a robbery had been reported, according to Nassau County police. A woman allegedly had entered the store and took multiple cans of tuna and bags of fish, placing them into her coat pockets.

A store employee approached the woman, who pushed him and then tried to bite him before she ran from the store without paying, according to police. It was believed that she took off west on Merrick Road toward Rockville Center.

The worker was not injured in the incident. Police were searching for the woman, who has not been identified. She was described as about 30 years old, wearing light black jeans, a black jacket and black sneakers.

An investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information regarding the incident or the suspect is asked to contact Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS.

Giovanny Campos was indicted Thursday on charges including second-degree kidnapping, third-degree rape, criminal sex act and reckless endangerment, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a press release Monday. The 50-year-old, who lives in the Jamaica neighborhood, pleaded not guilty.

According to the indictment and the investigation, Campos — who was known to the victim as Giovanny Guzman — worked as a driver with the Cheese Bus Company, during which time he drove a route from Central High School to North High School in Valley Stream. From January until July of this year, he allegedly would pick up a teen student along the route and on multiple occasions raped her, including in a parking lot while still on the bus.

“School bus drivers are trusted to transport and protect our children, but this defendant allegedly preyed on a teenage student and sexually abused her both on his bus and at his apartment in Queens,” said DA Donnelly.

If convicted, Campos faces up to 25 years in prison. Attorney information for Campos was not immediately clear. He is next scheduled to be back in court on Dec. 12.

Anyone who may have been victimized by Campos, or knows of anyone who may be a victim, is asked to contact NCDA’s Special Victims Bureau at (516) 571-1266.

Andreas Omar was charged early Wednesday with a slew of offenses, including criminal sex act, unlawful imprisonment, endangering the welfare of a child, and more, according to Nassau County police. He also faces multiple criminal contempt charges for a previous unrelated incident.

The charges came after a joint investigation revealed he had sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl, police said.

Omar was arraigned Wednesday afternoon from his bed at Nassau University Medical Center as he was being treated for an undisclosed ailment, according to the Nassau County district attorney’s office. Two full orders of protection were issued for Omar to stay away from the victim.

He is due back in court on Friday.

Police were called to a home in Woodbury just after 9 a.m. Tuesday and found a teen girl in trouble. She was “completely naked, came running from the back of a house, chased by another male,” said Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder.

The commissioner said the girl pointed out Omar to police before he ran into the house on Roseanne Drive. Shortly after, the suburban home was surrounded by police units, including heavily armed SWAT units, police said. The standoff lasted for more than seven hours.

It was not believed that Omar, 25, had any weapons on him at the time, and investigators said he had been a squatter at a home in foreclosure.

Police said the girl had been assaulted, suffering cuts and bruises to her arms. The police commissioner said it appeared the teen had come in contact with the man prior to Tuesday, but would not elaborate on the nature of their relationship.

The standoff ended when police brought Omar into custody. A neighbor and Commissioner Ryder said there had been several calls to the house for domestic incidents in the past, but the girl had not been involved previously.

The standoff in Woodbury began just after 9 a.m. Tuesday, after Nassau County police responded to a 911 call and found the teen girl in trouble.

The girl, about 14 or 15 years old, was “completely naked, came running from the back of a house, chased by another male,” said Suffolk Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder.

The police commissioner said the 25-year-old man then ran into a home on Roseanne Drive. Shortly after, the suburban home was surrounded by police units, including heavily armed SWAT units, police said. The standoff lasted well into Tuesday evening.

“We are now attempting to make conversation with him through a hostage negotiation team,” said Ryder.

Police said they did not believe the man was armed, and investigators said he had been a squatter at a home in foreclosure. Neighbors living next to the home were evacuated, while others in the area were ordered to simply stay indoors.

Police said she was assaulted, suffering cuts and bruises to her arms. The police commissioner said it appeared the teen had come in contact with the man prior to Tuesday, but would not elaborate on the nature of the relationship between the teen and man who barricaded himself in the home for more than seven hours.

The standoff ended after 5 p.m. when police brought the man, identified as Andreas Omar, into custody, with charges pending against him. The police commissioner said there had been several calls to the house for domestic incidents in the past, but the girl had not been involved previously.

“We’re attempting to make sure she’s taken care of, that’s our priority,” said Ryder. “At the residence, we are making sure the resident is contained, and when the time is right we will make entry.”

A call was made just after 2:30 p.m. Monday for a 45-year-old woman struck by a mini-school bus as she was crossing Long Beach Road at the intersection of Davison Avenue in Oceanside, according to Nassau County Police. The bus was turning left when the woman was struck and left pinned under the bus, police said.

The county’s Emergency Services Unit and town fire department used a five-ton floor jack along with high pressure air bags to free the woman, who was taken taken to a nearby hospital with leg injuries and a cut to her head. She was expected to recover.

The child in the stroller appeared to not be hurt, according to police, but was taken to the hospital for evaluation and was reunited with a family member.

The 71-year-old driver of the mini bus remained at the scene. Police said no charges are expected to be filed, but an investigation is ongoing.

The man walked into the department store at the Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City and went to the jewelry department, according to Nassau County police. He then smashed a glass display case and took three diamond necklaces worth about $30,000, police said.

The suspect then took off. he was last seen wearing a black hoodie, black pants, a black face mask, white gloves and black sneakers with a white sole.

No arrests have yet been made. An investigation is ongoing.

The robbery was the latest in a string of crimes at the mall, including a similar smash-and-grab at the same Macy’s in August.

The mall’s management said in a statement to NBC New York that the “safety and security of shoppers, retailers and employees is our highest priority.”

The incident took place around 3:15 p.m. on Saturday in Wantagh, according to Nassau County police. Two 12-year-old girls were walking on Beltagh Avenue near Holiday Park Drive when a woman driving an older model grey SUV allegedly came up to them.

The woman in the vehicle honked her horn and rolled down the window before yelling out to the girls, police said. The two children got scared, so they hid and ran away before getting in touch with a parent, according to police.

There initially was another claim of an attempted luring of a 7-year-old boy by a woman also in Wantagh earlier in October, but police later said that claim was unfounded.

Police are still investigating the Oct. 28th incident, saying they want to get in contact with the woman who was behind the wheel to get a better idea of what happened, and if any criminality was involved.

The incident occurred just after 11 a.m. Monday at the Green Acres Mall in Valley Stream, according to police. A man inside the second-floor Clique clothing store was suspected of shoplifting clothing by putting them on in layers above his clothes, Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said.

When the suspect, who has not been identified, was confronted by a story security guard, the pair got into a struggle, according to Ryder. That’s when the man said he had a gun, which then went off.

The shot went into the ground, according to police. No one was struck by the bullet and no injuries were reported as a result.

The mall immediately went into a lockdown, while schools in the area also went into a lockout as a precaution, said Ryder.

After the scuffle with security, the man took off, running out the the south side of the mall and through the parking garage where he got into a red SUV. Ryder said that the vehicle was last seen driving down nearby Mill Road. Investigators believe he was alone.

The police commissioner said the suspect ran off with no pants on and wearing just one sneaker, fleeing in his boxers after trying to strip off the clothing he was allegedly trying to steal.

“Whatever clothes he was stealing, he was layering as he was leaving. As he went to go leave…he started to strip the clothes,” said Ryder. “So some of the clothes he was wearing were stripped off. He was in between taking off his pants, and he ended up running out in his boxers.”

A shell casing was recovered at the scene, though no weapon was left behind. The mall was cleared after being placed on locked down, reopening for business before 1 p.m.

Police were searching for the pantsless pilferer. No arrests have yet been made.

The car plowed into the home on Arthur Avenue in South Floral Park around 8 a.m., officials said. It wasn’t immediately clear what led the car, a white two-door sedan, to smash into the house, but given how far it went into the home, it is believed to have been at a high rate of speed.

It is believed that the car was stolen from the neighboring town of Elmont. The owner of the car tracked it on GPS, and discovered it inside the home.

“I was coming down the block and the cops were already here,” said Rebecca Aguilar, saying she asked an officer about her vehicle. “He’s like, ‘What kind of car?…Yea, it’s inside the house.'”

The homeowner and her son were asleep when the car crashed into the house. Both were unharmed.

“I just heard the big bang, and when I got up, everything was crashed on the floor. I thought it was a bomb, I thought we were at war,” said Sate Birmingham. “I didn’t even see the car in the house, I couldn’t even go into the living room.”

Right after the crash, the driver then fled in an unknown direction. Police are searching for the driver. An investigation is ongoing.

Sotirios Spanos was indicted on a slew of charges Tuesday, including aggravated vehicular homicide, manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter, assault, driving while intoxicated and reckless driving for the crash that occurred shortly after midnight on Aug. 12, Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said. If convicted of the charged, Spanos faces up to 25 years in prison.

The 33-year-old Spanos was heading east on Northern Boulevard near Moores Hill Road in the village of Laurel Hollow, according to police, when the Acura MDX he was driving crossed over into oncoming traffic and plowed head-on into the luxury sports car with husband and wife Odalis and Ismenia Urena inside.

A data recorder inside Spanos’ Acura stated that he was driving about 100 mph just a couple seconds before the crash, according to the district attorney’s office. He didn’t hit the brakes until less than two seconds before hitting the couple’s 2013 convertible at about 84 mph, the DA’s office said, hitting the front-passenger side before driving over the vehicle.

Ismenia Urena was pronounced dead at the scene. Odalis Urena was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead about an hour after the crash.

More than three hours after the deadly incident, Spanos’ BAC (blood alcohol content) was still twice the legal limit, according to the criminal complaint. He was arrested by Oyster Bay police at that time.

“Ismenia and Odalis Urena had two young daughters. Ismenia was a recently published author and worked as a certified life coach. Her husband, Odalis, owned a successful construction company. The couple was in the prime of their lives, and in an instant, this defendant allegedly took it all away while speeding down Northern Boulevard at 100 miles an hour,” said District Attorney Donnelly. “Now, the Urena’s children are without their mother and father and a community is in mourning.”

At his court hearing Tuesday, Spanos pleaded not guilty and was remanded. His next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 17. Dozens of people, including two Greek Orthodox priests, were there to support Spanos, though none answered questions from reporters.

Family members and loved ones of the husband and wife, both 37, packed the courtroom Tuesday as well, calling for justice for the Syosset couple’s two orphaned daughters, ages 14 and 8. They were in tears as they left the courtroom in Mineloa.

“I feel sad very sad for my son he left two daughters. We are also devastated,” Juana Cruz, the mother of Odalis Urena, said through a translator.

Tiffany McFadzean couldn’t believe her eyes when she looked out into the backyard of her West Hempstead home Tuesday morning.

“We saw this big huge hole it caught us off guard,” she said.

The sinkhole measures about six feet deep and 10 feet across, and appeared suddenly with zero warning.

“We’ve never noticed anything, no water pooling there or anything,” said McFadzean. “There have never been any signs of anything going on underneath.”

The family only moved to the home two years ago, but based on the amount of dirt that has washed away, it appeared that the area had been a problem for some time.

The town of Hempstead told the homeowner it could have been caused by an abandoned cesspool. McFadzean said she was just happy she nor her mother were outside at the time.

“I cant even think about how I would feel if we were standing there or someone we knew was standing there,” she said.

McFadzean is still left with the prospect of fixing the hole, but first wants to find out why it happened and stop it from growing larger.

“I don’t know that it’s going to stop here,” she said.

“I look at my Ring camera and there’s my 5-year-old. With a strange man outside our house door. I don’t know why my son is home,” said the boy’s father, William Matthies.

The parents were confused because his son was supposed to be in school at Forest Lake Elementary in Wantagh and no one had told them their son was missing. They later learned their son asked to use the bathroom, was allowed to go by himself, and that’s when he left the school through a side door and walked all the way home.

“He went down three hallways,” said mother Katie Matthies. “The hallway where the class is, the hallway with the bathroom and the hallway where the exit was. There was no one monitoring the hallways.”

And there are no alarms on the doors to warn people. The teacher noticed William hadn’t returned from the bathroom and a search took place inside the building.

“I called the school,” the mother said. “I said a 5-year-old in your school is on my Ring doorbell. The principal picked up the phone asked where and he ran there on foot.”

The boy had to cross three streets and one three-way intersection to make it home. Luckily, Stuart Kavner, a neighbor and an educator for 47 years, saw the boy walking by himself and became concerned.

“I asked him where he was going, he said ‘I’m going home.’ I say, ‘OK,’ and I start walking behind him, and he said, ‘You don’t have to walk behind me.'” “I said, ‘I want to make sure you’re okay.’ I walked quite a ways to his house.”

Once he got to his house, he knew no one was home and called 911. The Wantagh School District said in a statement, “We remain committed to ensuring best practices are in place and are continually reviewing our safety protocols. Since this incident occurred, the district has already put additional security measures in place.”

The district wouldn’t elaborate, but the Matthies say the school now has an aide for William and battery operated door alarms. But they believe more needs to be done including aides for every kindergarten class and hardwired alarms at every door.

“Something that is hardwired to the front office of the school to say this door is open now, let’s go check it out,” said William Matthies.

While the family is relieved their son wasn’t hurt, they hope this is a wake up call to the district that more security measures are needed.

“I feel like it’s our responsibility that all children in Wantagh are safe. If my son can do this, who else can do this? One time is too many, this is a call to action,” said Katie Matthies.

The driver accused of killing four members of the same family in a Long Island crash was arraigned on a slew of charges after allegedly speeding at more than 120 mph while high on cocaine and fentanyl, the district attorney announced.

At his arraignment Wednesday, Michael DeAngelo showed no emotion as he faced more than 30 counts of a dozen different charges, the most-serious of which included aggravated vehicular homicide, manslaughter and assault.

DeAngelo was arrested back in August for the deadly Aug. 6 incident on Sunrise Highway in Massapequa that claimed the lives of a father, two of his children and his granddaughter. The 32-year-old DeAngelo plowed into the rear of the vehicle driven by 61-year-old Patrice Huntley that was stopped in the center lane at a red light outside a shopping center, police said.

Nassau County Aug 8, 2023

‘I will never be the same': Mother loses son and daughter in tragic Long Island crash

Nassau County Aug 7, 2023

Sunrise Highway crash: Father and 2 kids killed, 5 hurt in horrific Long Island crash

Huntley, his 12-year-old daughter Hannah and his 11-year-old son Jeremiah were all killed in the crash that crushed the SUV like and aluminum can. Huntley and daughter Hannah were pronounced dead at the scene. Jeremiah was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Chantel Solomon, 6, and Huntley’s 18-year-old daughter, Brienna Peoples, were both taken to the hospital in critical condition with what police called “extreme internal injuries,” including a brain bleed. Chantel died six days later; Peoples was left with critical injuries, from which prosecutors have said she may never recover.

“Patrice Huntley and three children – members of the same family – were killed due to the extraordinarily reckless actions of a defendant who was allegedly driving 120 miles an hour while impaired by cocaine and fentanyl,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. “No one was safe on Sunrise Highway that Sunday evening and tragically Patrice, Jeremiah, Hannah, and Chantel lost their lives while going to get ice cream. No family should ever have to bury four loved ones at the same time.”

Another of Huntley’s children, 14-year-old David, was in the front seat and miraculously survived, suffering back and rib injuries but is expected to survive. He walked away from the crash before collapsing on the road. He said that the car that struck them was street racing before the crash, according to his mother who spoke to NBC New York in the days immediately after the crash.

The children and Huntley had been out celebrating his new job and were on their way to get ice cream when the car crashed into them from behind. The DA’s office previously said the deadly crash was “one of the worst tragedies in recent memory on Long Island.”

Investigators have said the driver of the speeding Hyundai, DeAngelo, went into the back of Huntley’s SUV, which then crashed into the car in front of it before flipping over and smashed into another vehicle at the stoplight. First responders had to work on multiple cars, at one point cutting into the metal of one vehicle to get inside.

The driver of the Chevrolet Malibu that was in front of Huntley, an 83-year-old man, was injured and treated at the hospital. The driver of the third car struck, a 33-year-old, refused medical attention at the scene.

DeAngelo suffered compound ankle fractures and other injuries in the crash that sent his vehicle airborne and saw his car land upside down, and his attorney said, adding that he had undergone multiple surgeries as a result. Police in August said that just one second before the crash, he was traveling 120.5 mph; he didn’t hit the brakes until less than a half-second before the impact, and had only slowed down to about 95 mph before making impact.

It wasn’t made clear where DeAngelo was prior to the crash, but he had been arrested twice before, twice for DUI, prosecutors said. Another arrest occurred just days before the deadly crash, according to prosecutors, when DeAngelo was charged with drug possession.

The DA said Wednesday that DeAngelo had visible signs of recent drug use including track marks on his arm and hands, and was under the influence of fentanyl and cocaine the day of the crash. Needles and a pipe were said to have been found in and around his vehicle after the crash.

DeAngelo was remanded, with no bail was given during Thursday’s hearing; bail had previously been set at $500,000. He is next scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 19. If convicted of the charges, DeAngelo faces up to 25 years in prison.

“This guy was arrested two other times for the same careless recklessness. We need to put an end to it how many lives have to be lost,” said Empress Adama Kafentse Huntley, a cousin of Patrice.

‘I will never be the same’: Mother loses son and daughter in tragic crash

The mother who lost her 12-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son in the crash spoke to NBC New York in the days after the horrific incident, sharing her unconscionable grief.

“This is so terrible, this is such a terrible tragedy,” Tasheba Hamilton told NBC New York over the phone. “It almost killed me to hold my son, his body was cold…I just couldn’t imagine how this could have happened?”

Tragedy doesn’t begin to describe the heartache she faces. Hamilton lost her daughter, Hannah, and her son, Jeremiah in the wreck. Her daughter Brienna and granddaughter Chantel were critically injured, and may never recover from their injuries.

“I will never be the same, my other children will never be the same,” said Hamilton.

Hamilton said she found out about the crash from a stranger who called her from the scene.

“I said ‘Who is this?’ He said ‘Your daughter and your family have been in an accident,’ and he said ‘I witnessed the whole thing, you have to come fast, it’s really bad,'” Hamilton told News 4.

It was her daughter Brienna who pleaded with the man to call her mother.

A photo from April shows all the family members together, at the funeral for Hamilton’s mother, and was one of the last times Hamilton was with all her children and their father.

Hamilton said Huntley, of Flushing, Queens, was a caring father and advocate for veterans, a retired Marine who helped veterans find employment (his new job they had been celebrating was for director of veteran services at Medgar Evers College). Their daughter Hannah loved to paint and make artwork, she said, and their son loved video games, like many others his age.

The grieving mother wants the driver to face consequences, but she knows that won’t bring her family back.

“That’s not going to bring my children back,” she said through tears. “There’s no words for the pain that I am feeling, I am breaking down in public everywhere I go. I still don’t believe my son and daughter are gone.”

The mother did have a message for Deangelo — as well as his attorney.

“I spent this morning having a screaming fit for the pain I’m going through,” said Hamilton. “I want that lawyer of his when you’re thinking of defending someone think of your own family, this is just disgusting…Can you imagine what we are going through and then going home every day to an empty house and all the noise and chatter there is gone? I’m just going through a lot.”

A 21-year-old man was arrested after allegedly killing another man and hurting four others after he opened fire outside an illegal end-of-summer party at a Long Island event space, police said.

Kyle Matthews was charged with second-degree murder and weapon possession for the Aug. 21 shooting in Valley Stream. Witnesses said shots were fired at a space called Dopies around 8:30 p.m. A semi-automatic gun was used to spray eight bullets into a crowd, striking a number of people, Nassau County police said in the aftermath of the gunfire.

A 20-year-old man from Brooklyn, identified as Deandre Carter, was killed and four others under the age of 18 — including a 12-year-old boy and three 17 year olds — were hurt. Nassau County Police Det. Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick said that Matthews walked up to the five people standing in front of the party and opened fire with two handguns.

Police said Matthews is a known Bloods member who shot at the party on Ocean Avenue because it was being hosted by people known to members of the Crips gang. The 12-year-old boy was hit in the shoulder, police said, and two others walked in to Queens Hospital with injuries to their leg and knee, respectively.

People were seen running down the block right after the gunfire broke out. Those who live in the area have described it as highly unusual for a shooting or anything of like it to occur in the residential neighborhood.

A memorial now stands outside the event space. Bullet holes can still be seen in the windows from the shots fired allegedly by Matthews and at least one other.

Matthews defiantly denied have any involvement in the shooting, telling reporters “I didn’t do s–t!”

Nassau County Police Commissioner Pat Ryder said Matthews, of Far Rockaway and Uniondale, was previously arrested in Dec. 2021 for having a loaded gun. He was sentenced to three years of probation, and a year later, was again arrested for gun possession — but was released on bail.

On Thursday, Matthews was remanded and sent back to jail. His next court appearance is scheduled for later in September.

“This individual should have been in jail, this senseless murder would not have happened and the other three victims shot and wounded,” said Ryder.

Election officials and police across New York are sounding the alarm on a growing phenomenon: election impersonators.

People pretending to be election board workers have been reportedly knocking on front doors and telling people they have committed a crime. The impersonators in question have been reported in at least 13 separate counties across the state.

According to investigators, the election fraudsters are targeting people who moved from one county to another, and then legally registered to vote at their new address. The impersonators attempt to frighten voters by saying they are committing a crime by showing up in the state voter database multiple times.

The goal of this group seems appears to be keeping certain people from going to the polls.

After 15 years of working in elections, Nassau County Elections Democratic Commissioner Jim Scheuerman calls the activity deeply troubling.

“It’s upsetting to see anyone get confused or accosted at their door, it’s horrible,” he said Friday.

In warnings made this week, election officials across the state said real election board members do not make house calls.

“If a voter is approached by someone claiming to be from the State or County Board of Elections, they are encouraged to immediately request identification,” a statement from the State Board of Elections read Wednesday.

The state board of elections says it appears to be a coordinated effort to intimidate voters.

Sarah Goff, of the watchdog group Common Cause, said these impersonators seem to be driven by unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud.

“I would be uncomfortable too if someone showed up at my door and told me I was committing a crime,” Goff said.

The state attorney general and local law enforcement agencies are actively investigating the matter to find who is behind the alarming trend.

It was not immediately clear what led up to the deadly incident in Valley Stream, but there was a large presence by Nassau County police in the area of Ocean Avenue for much of early Tuesday morning in the aftermath of the shooting.

Witnesses said the gunfire went down at a space called Dopies around 8:30 p.m. Monday. A semi-automatic gun was used to spray eight bullets into a crowd, striking a number of people, police said at a press conference. A 20-year-old man from Brooklyn was killed and four others under the age of 18 were hurt.

A 12-year-old was shot in his shoulder, according to police, and was recovering at the hospital. Two 17-year-old males walked in to Queens Hospital with injuries to their leg and knee, respectively, while a 17-year-old female from Brooklyn suffered a cut to her hand.

Police said they are looking for a man in dark clothing who was last seen heading to Queens.

“There was 50-60 people there. They didn’t all stay around when the shots were fired, so we have a lot of work to do on making this case,” Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said.

One partygoer said that it was a farewell-to-summer event with mostly young people attending, when things turned hostile. Police said the party was illegal because the rental hall was selling tickets at the door and was offering alcohol inside. As a result, the owner of the rental hall could face charges.

County officials said they will start upping the pressure on owners in order to shut similar kinds of parties down quickly.

People were seen running down the block right after the gunfire broke out. Those who live in the area said it is highly unusual for a shooting or anything of like it to occur in the residential neighborhood.

Video showed officers securing the neighborhood and looking for evidence.

The street remained closed to traffic for hours. An investigation is ongoing.

Nassau County police said that Steven Frigand was arrested after he shot a number of times from his apartment on Sussex Avenue in Massapequa, toward the direction of some neighbors early Sunday morning.

Bullets fired by the 57-year-old hit the back outside wall of one nearby home, and others flew into the living room of another house, according to police — with a woman nearby. Another allegedly entered the bedroom of a sleeping child.

Officers were called to the scene, and Frigand initially refused to leave his home, police said. He did eventually surrender and was charged with two counts of reckless endangerment, as well as three counts of weapon possession.

No injuries were reported as a result of the shots Frigand allegedly fired. A motive for the shooting was not immediately clear, but when police entered the home, they said they found 17 guns, 39 ammo feeding devices, two pounds of cocaine, ketamine, scales and plastic bags — all material consistent with dealing drugs, according to officials.

Men who were seen removing furniture from the basement home refused to comment on Monday.

An investigation is ongoing.

More charges are expected to be filed against a driver who was allegedly speeding at more than 120 mph while high on cocaine and fentanyl when he slammed into the back of an SUV, killing multiple family members inside, according to police.

The Nassau County district attorney’s office said an additional homicide charge will likely be added during the grand jury following the death of 6-year-old Chantel Solomon, who died on Saturday as a result of her injuries suffered in the crash on Sunrise Highway in Massapequa less than a week prior.

“This is one of the worst tragedies in recent memory on Long Island and we extend our condolences to the family of Chantel Solomon. We anticipate an additional homicide charge will be added in the grand jury,” a statement from the DA’s office read.

Michael Deangelo was arrested Friday for the deadly Aug. 6 incident that claimed the lives of a father, two of his children, and Solomon, his granddaughter. The 32-year-old Deangelo plowed into the rear of the vehicle driven by 61-year-old Patrice Huntley that was stopped in the center lane at a red light outside a shopping center, police said.

Huntley, his 12-year-old daughter Hannah and his 11-year-old son Jeremiah were all killed in the crash that crushed the SUV like and aluminum can. Huntley and daughter Hannah were pronounced dead at the scene. Jeremiah was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Chantel and Huntley’s 18-year-old daughter Brienna Peoples were taken to the hospital in critical condition with what police called “extreme internal injuries,” including a brain bleed. Chantel died six days later; Peoples was still in critical condition on Wednesday, and may never fully recover.

Another of Huntley’s children, 14-year-old David, was in the front seat and miraculously survived, suffering back and rib injuries but is expected to survive. He walked away from the crash before collapsing on the road. He said that the car that struck them was street racing before the crash, according to his mother who spoke to NBC New York in the days immediately after the crash.

The children and Huntley had been out celebrating his new job and were on their way to get ice cream when the car crashed into them from behind.

Nassau County Aug 8, 2023

‘I will never be the same': Mother loses son and daughter in tragic Long Island crash

Nassau County Aug 7, 2023

Sunrise Highway crash: Father and 2 kids killed, 5 hurt in horrific Long Island crash

Investigators have said the driver of the speeding Hyundai, Deangelo, went into the back of Huntely’s SUV, which then crashed into the car in front of it before flipping over and smashed into another vehicle at the stoplight. First responders had to work on multiple cars, at one point cutting into the metal of one vehicle to get inside.

The driver of the Chevrolet Malibu that was in front of Huntley, an 83-year-old man, was injured and treated at the hospital. The driver of the third car struck, a 33-year-old, refused medical attention at the scene.

Deangelo suffered compound ankle fractures and other injuries, and his attorney said he had undergone three or four surgeries as a result. Police on Friday said that just one second before the crash, he was traveling 120.5 mph. They did not state where Deangelo was prior to the crash, but he has been arrested twice before, twice for DUI.

“This guy was arrested two other times for the same careless recklessness. We need to put an end to it how many lives have to be lost,” said Empress Adama Kafentse Huntley, a cousin of Patrice.

Deangelo was arraigned at his bed at Nassau University Medical Center. He pleaded not guilty and his bail was set at $500,000 cash.

His attorney said they intend to fight the charges, and questioned if the car’s black box recorder could be reliable given how damaged the car was.

“They say there was controlled substances in his body, but they don’t tell you that it can stay in your blood stream 30, 15, 4 days,” said attorney Karl Seman outside of court on Tuesday.

Deangelo’s next court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 21.

‘I will never be the same’: Mother loses son and daughter in tragic crash

The mother who lost her 12-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son in the crash spoke to NBC New York in the days after the horrific incident, sharing her unconscionable grief.

“This is so terrible, this is such a terrible tragedy,” Tasheba Hamilton told NBC New York over the phone. “It almost killed me to hold my son, his body was cold…I just couldn’t imagine how this could have happened?”

Tragedy doesn’t begin to describe the heartache she faces. Hamilton lost her daughter, Hannah, and her son, Jeremiah in the wreck. Her daughter Brienna and granddaughter Chantel were critically injured, and may never recover from their injuries.

“I will never be the same, my other children will never be the same,” said Hamilton.

Hamilton said she found out about the crash from a stranger who called her from the scene.

“I said ‘Who is this?’ He said ‘Your daughter and your family have been in an accident,’ and he said ‘I witnessed the whole thing, you have to come fast, it’s really bad,'” Hamilton told News 4.

It was her daughter Brienna who pleaded with the man to call her mother.

A photo from April shows all the family members together, at the funeral for Hamilton’s mother, and was one of the last times Hamilton was with all her children and their father.

Hamilton said Huntley, of Flushing, Queens, was a caring father and advocate for veterans, a former Marine himself who helped veterans find employment (his new job they had been celebrating was for director of veteran services at Medgar Evers College). Their daughter Hannah loved to paint and make artwork, she said, and their son loved video games, like many others his age.

The grieving mother wants the driver to face consequences, but she knows that won’t bring her family back.

“That’s not going to bring my children back,” she said through tears. “There’s no words for the pain that I am feeling, I am breaking down in public everywhere I go. I still don’t believe my son and daughter are gone.”

The mother did have a message for Deangelo — as well as his attorney.

“I spent this morning having a screaming fit for the pain I’m going through,” said Hamilton. “I want that lawyer of his when you’re thinking of defending someone think of your own family, this is just disgusting…Can you imagine what we are going through and then going home every day to an empty house and all the noise and chatter there is gone? I’m just going through a lot.”

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Traffic came to a complete stop on the busy North Bellmore intersection after the individual was caught on video pointing a gun at everyone in her path.

Moments before the cop struck them down, police say the 33-year-old crossing the intersection of Jerusalem Avenue and Bellmore Avenue fired a gun once in the air.

“It’s a loaded gun that she’s waving around in the traffic, pointing at people that have got their children and their families in their cars,” Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said Tuesday.

The person then points the gun at her head, as seen in the video shared widely across social media. It’s then that a Nassau County officer hits her with his squad car.

Once knocked down, officers restrained the individual and removed the semiautomatic handgun. Police said they were taken to a nearby hospital to be treated for her injuries.

The officer who struck the person was taken to another hospital to be treated for trauma. Commissioner Ruder called the unidentified officer a hero.

“I never am going to Morning morning quarterback my cops. They did an outstanding job. They faced down deadly physical force against the civilians and themselves and they used their vehicle to stop their threat,” he said.

The individual faces multiple charges, including reckless endangerment, three counts of third-degree menacing, weapon possession and more, with an arraignment Wednesday afternoon.

The NYPD said the suspect was arrested and charged in connection to two Bed-Stuy burglary incidents in June.

The incident occurred around 12:30 a.m. Saturday in the village of Laurel Hollow, Nassau County police said. Sotirios Spanos was driving east on Northern Boulevard near Moores Hill Road in an Acura MDX when he crossed over into oncoming traffic, according to police.

The 32-year-old Spanos crashed into a 2013 Ferrari convertible that was heading west at the time, Nassau County police said. A 37-year-old woman who was a passenger inside the luxury car was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver, also 37, was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The criminal complaint identified the victims as Odalis Urena and Ismenia Urena, a husband and wife.

Spanos, who lives on Holly Lane in Syosset, was found to be intoxicated at the time and was arrested. He was charged with two counts each of manslaughter and assault, as well as aggravated vehicular homicide, reckless driving and DWI. According to the criminal complaint, Spanos’ blood alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit.

His arraignment is scheduled for Aug. 13. Attorney information for Spanos was not immediately available.

Police arrested a driver who they said was speeding and high on multiple drugs when he sparked a horrific and tragic car crash on Long Island that killed a father and two of his children, and leaving two of his other kids clinging to life.

Michael Deangelo was arrested Friday for the deadly crash in Massapequa that occurred five days earlier. It was not immediately clear what charges the 32-year-old faces, and attorney information for Deangelo was not available.

According to police, Deangelo was high on cocaine and fentanyl as he sped down Sunrise Highway just before 7:30 p.m. Sunday. He allegedly was driving more than 120 mph right before slamming into the SUV driven by 61-year-old Patrice Huntley that was stopped in the center lane at a red light.

Huntley, his 12-year-old daughter Hannah and his 11-year-old son Jeremiah were all killed in the crash that crushed the SUV like and aluminum can. Huntley and daughter Hannah were pronounced dead at the scene. Jeremiah was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Huntley’s 18-year-old daughter Brienna Peoples and 6-year-old granddaughter Chantel Solomon were both still in critical condition at the hospital Friday night, fighting for their lives with what police called “extreme internal injuries,” including a brain bleed, from which they may never fully recover.

Another of Huntley’s children, 14-year-old David, was in the front seat and miraculously survived, suffering back and rib injuries but is expected to survive. He walked away from the crash before collapsing on the road. He said that the car that struck them was street racing before the crash, according to his mother who spoke to NBC New York in the days immediately after the crash.

On Sunday, the children and Huntley had been out celebrating his new job, and were on their way to get ice cream when the car crashed into them from behind.

Nassau County Aug 8, 2023

‘I will never be the same': Mother loses son and daughter in tragic Long Island crash

Nassau County Aug 7, 2023

Sunrise Highway crash: Father and 2 kids killed, 5 hurt in horrific Long Island crash

Investigators have said the driver of the speeding Hyundai, Deangelo, went into the back of Huntely’s SUV, which then crashed into the car in front of it before flipping over and smashed into another vehicle at the stoplight. First responders had to work on multiple cars, at one point cutting into the metal of one vehicle to get inside.

The driver of the Chevrolet Malibu that was in front of Huntley, an 83-year-old man, was injured and treated at the hospital. The driver of the third car struck, a 33-year-old, refused medical attention at the scene.

Deangelo suffered compound ankle fractures and other injuries. Police on Friday said that just one second before the crash, he was traveling 120.5 mph. They did not state where Deangelo was prior to the crash, but he has been arrested twice before, twice for DUI.

“His behavior prior to the accident, his reckless driving, all contributed to this accident killing three people,” said Det. Capt. Stephen Fitzpatrick, of Nassau County Police.

Deangelo was arraigned at his bed at Nassau University Medical Center. He pleaded not guilty and his bail was set at $500,000 cash. His next court date is schedule for Aug. 15.

An investigation into the incident is ongoing.

‘I will never be the same’: Mother loses son and daughter in tragic crash

The mother who lost her 12-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son in the crash spoke to NBC New York in the days after the horrific incident, sharing her unconscionable grief.

“This is so terrible, this is such a terrible tragedy,” Tasheba Hamilton told NBC New York over the phone. “It almost killed me to hold my son, his body was cold…I just couldn’t imagine how this could have happened?”

Tragedy doesn’t begin to describe the heartache she faces. Hamilton lost her daughter, Hannah, and her son, Jeremiah in the wreck. Her daughter Brienna and granddaughter Chantel were critically injured, and may never recover from their injuries.

“I will never be the same, my other children will never be the same. My daughter and granddaughter have possibility of not walking and be disabled for life, if they live,” said Hamilton.

Hamilton said she found out about the crash from a stranger who called her from the scene.

“I said ‘Who is this?’ He said ‘Your daughter and your family have been in an accident,’ and he said ‘I witnessed the whole thing, you have to come fast, it’s really bad,'” Hamilton told News 4.

It was her daughter Brienna who pleaded with the man to call her mother.

A photo from April shows all the family members together, at the funeral for Hamilton’s mother, and was one of the last times Hamilton was with all her children and their father.

Hamilton said Huntley, of Flushing, Queens, was a caring father and advocate for veterans, a former Marine himself who helped veterans find employment (his new job they had been celebrating was for director of veteran services at Medgar Evers College). Their daughter Hannah loved to paint and make artwork, she said, and their son loved video games, like many others his age.

The grieving mother wants the driver to face consequences, but she knows that won’t bring her family back.

“That’s not going to bring my children back,” she said through tears. “There’s no words for the pain that I am feeling, I am breaking down in public everywhere I go. I still don’t believe my son and daughter are gone.”

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A mother who lost her 12-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son in a horrific and tragic car crash on Long Island is sharing her unconscionable grief, as details of what happened leading up to the crash start to surface.

“This is so terrible, this is such a terrible tragedy,” Tasheba Hamilton told NBC New York over the phone. “It almost killed me to hold my son, his body was cold…I just couldn’t imagine how this could have happened?”

Tragedy doesn’t begin to describe the heartache she faces. Hamilton lost her daughter, Hannah, and her son, Jeremiah in the wreck on Sunrise Highway in Massapequa just before 7:30 p.m. Sunday. The father of the children, 61-year-old Pat Huntley, also died in the crash outside a shopping center.

On top of her unthinkable loses, Hamilton’s 18-year-old daughter Brienna Peoples and her 5-year-old granddaughter Chantel Solomon were both still in critical condition at the hospital Tuesday night, fighting for their lives with what police called “extreme internal injuries,” including a brain bleed, from which they may never fully recover.

A photo from April shows all the family members together, at the funeral for Hamilton’s mother, and was one of the last times Hamilton was with all her children and their father. On Sunday, the children and Huntley had been out celebrating his new job, and were on their way to get ice cream when the car crashed into them from behind.

While investigators still have not yet definitely stated what caused the crash, police said a speeding car slammed into Huntley’s SUV while he was stopped at a red light. The 32-year-old driver of the speeding vehicle went into the back of the SUV, which then crashed into the car in front of it before flipping over and smashed into another vehicle at the stoplight.

First responders had to work on multiple cars, at one point cutting into the metal of one vehicle to get inside. Hamilton said she found out about the crash from a stranger who called her from the scene.

“I said ‘Who is this?’ He said ‘Your daughter and your family have been in an accident,’ and he said ‘I witnessed the whole thing, you have to come fast, it’s really bad,'” Hamilton told News 4.

It was her daughter Brienna who pleaded with the man to call her mother.

“I will never be the same, my other children will never be the same. My daughter and granddaughter have possibility of not walking and be disabled for life, if they live,” said Hamilton.

Huntley and their daughter Hannah were pronounced dead at the scene. Their son Jeremiah was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Hamilton said Huntley, of Flushing, Queens, was a caring father and advocate for veterans (his new job they had been celebrating was for director of veteran services at Medgar Evers College). Their daughter Hannah loved to paint and make artwork, she said, and their son loved video games, like many others his age.

Another of Huntley’s children, 14-year-old David, was in the front seat and miraculously survived, suffering back and rib injuries but is expected to survive. He walked away from the crash before collapsing on the road. He said that the car that struck them was street racing before the crash, according to Hamilton.

Another witness said similarly.

“We heard a car at a high rate of speed under the train trestle. It didn’t stop, didn’t do anything and just plowed into the cars, and the cars just went flying all over the place,” said Ruth, who saw the incident.

The driver of the Chevrolet Malibu that was in front of Huntley, an 83-year-old man, was injured and treated at the hospital. The driver of the third car struck, a 33-year-old, refused medical attention at the scene.

The driver of the Hyundai that plowed into the family suffered compound ankle fractures and other injuries. No charges have yet been filed in the crash, but police didn’t rule out charges as a possibility, saying speed was the main factor in the crash.

Hamilton wants the driver to face consequences, but she knows that won’t bring her family back.

“That’s not going to bring my children back,” she said through tears. “There’s no words for the pain that I am feeling, I am breaking down in public everywhere I go. I still don’t believe my son and daughter are gone.”

An investigation into the incident is ongoing.

The 911 call for the crash came in just before 7:30 p.m. Sunday, police said, as video from the scene in Massapequa showed firefighters at the scene surrounding an overturned car with extensive damage on the Sunrise Highway. First responders had to work on multiple cars, at one point cutting into the metal of one vehicle to get inside.

It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the crash, but detectives said all of the vehicles involved were traveling west near a shopping center, with two cars stopped at a red light in the center lane. That’s when a 32-year-old driver of a Hyundai traveling at a high rate of speed plowed into the back of a vehicle that held six family members, including a father and his children and a grandchild.

The family’s vehicle then crashed into the car in front of them, a Chevrolet Malibu driven by an 83-year-old man, then flipped over and crashed into another car.

The driver of the first car hit — 60-year-old Patrice Huntley, of Flushing, Queens — was killed in the crash, police said at a press conference Monday afternoon. His 13-year-old daughter, Hannah, was pronounced dead at the scene, while his 10-year-old son Jeremiah was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Huntley’s 6-year-old granddaughter and another of his children, an 18-year-old, were hospitalized and are clinging to life with what Nassau Police Det. Capt. Steve Fitzpatrick called “extreme internal injuries,” including a brain bleed. Another one of Huntley’s children, a 14-year-old, suffered back and rib injuries, but is expected to survive.

Police said that Huntley and his family had gone out to get ice cream to celebrate the father’s new job when they were struck from behind. The 83-year-old driver in front of them was injured as well, but was treated at the hospital and released.

The driver of the third car struck, a 33-year-old, refused medical attention at the scene.

The driver of the Hyundai that plowed into the family suffered compound ankle fractures and other injuries. No charges have yet been filed in the crash, but police didn’t rule out charges as a possibility, saying speed was the main factor in the crash.

Public works personnel were seen cleaning the area for hours after the crash, which left metal parts and debris scattered across the pavement. The crash and cleanup caused significant traffic jams while the road was closed for police activity.

An investigation is ongoing.

The crash occurred just hours before another deadly incident, this time taking the life of a 6-year-old. The victim’s 26-year-old mom and teenage cousin were injured in the crash as well, police said.

The suspect in that case, 18-year-old Jorge Bonilla Gutierrez, was charged with DWI after his BAC was found to twice the legal limit. He also faces second-degree manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter and assault charges. Gutierrez was also allegedly driving without a license.

Attorney information for Gutierrez was not immediately made available.

According to police, Jacob Alvarenga Mejia was at his Jericho Turnpike home in Bellerose Village on Saturday, May 13, when he noticed three people messing with his 2023 Toyota Highlander. He went outside with a large kitchen knife around 1:30 a.m., cops say, and stabbed one of the men, Luis Pena, multiple times in the upper torso before the group ran off.

“As they are getting in their car, the last individual getting into the car, [Mejia] stabbed him multiple times in the back,” said Nassau County Police Captain Stephen Fitzpatrick.

Pena was taken to a hospital in the Bronx by the other two men. He died a short time later.

Mejia, 28, was arrested in the case on Thursday following an investigation. Detectives claim he was the aggressor in this case. They say he may have been angry his tires were stolen two months after a catalytic converter theft.

Mejia is charged with first-degree assault and first-degree manslaughter and was being held on $500,000 cash bail. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Friday afternoon and is due back in court next week.

His family declined to speak but his attorney said there’s more to the story.

“We think the scenario is a bit different than what was described and we’ll take it from there. Was he defending himself? It will be investigated,” said attorney James McGlynn.

“By law, you’re allowed to defend your property, you can use physical force. You can’t use deadly physical force,” said Capt. Fitzpatrick. “There’s no indication of the three subjects stealing the rims being the aggressors, being physical to Mr. Mejia.”

It’s unclear if the other two men who allegedly stole the tires and rims with Pena will eventually be charged.

Nassau County police say it appears a tractor-trailer clipped a school bus and lost control in North Bellmore, sideswiping a number of vehicles before flipping on its side in a parking lot near Jerusalem Avenue and Newbridge Road. Water bottles from the Walmart truck spilled all over the pavement, footage from the scene shows.

Cops say no kids were on the school bus at the time of the accident. The two injured children were in passenger vehicles. Four adults also were hurt. All the victims are expected to survive, police say.

“It sounded like a major earthquake,” said Angela Scarpinito, whose bedroom faces the crash scene. She said her first reaction was to pray, “because I thought people were dead at that point. It was that loud.”

Video from the scene showed nearly a half-dozen passenger vehicles stopped at odd angles in the intersection. The vehicles appeared to sustain varying amounts of damage, though none compared to a car wrapped around a pole.

The cleanup lasted well into early afternoon.

Police say their investigation is ongoing. No criminality is suspected at this time.

According to detectives, Antonio Condello got into a road rage-related war of words with a 39-year-old driver near the franchise’s Northern Boulevard location in Manhasset around 4:45 p.m. Wednesday.

It’s not clear what sparked the confrontation initially, but Nassau County cops say Condello got out of his car as the two were arguing, went to his trunk and pulled out a firearm — all the while continuing to yell at the victim.

The victim, afraid for his safety, went into the TGI Fridays restaurant. Condello followed him, cops say, and punched him multiple times in the face before fleeing the scene. He did not require medical attention.

Police caught up with Condello at his New Hyde Park home later in the day and took him into custody without further incident. A black firearm was found under the passenger side doormat of his car, they say.

Condello is charged with menacing, criminal possession of a weapon and assault. He is expected to be arraigned later Thursday in Hempstead. Information on a possible attorney for him wasn’t immediately available.

A family coming together to attend a Long Island funeral for a loved one must now prepare for another one, after a woman was killed in a devastating overnight house fire after she went back inside in an effort to save her beloved dog.

The fire burned through the home in Herricks early Tuesday morning, and as investigators dug through the shell of the house, fire officials are not sure what may have sparked the flames. Seven people escaped the inferno, but family members said Kashmira Patel ran back inside to save her dog, and didn’t make it back out.

“They are standing and watching, that’s it. It looked like the movies,” said her brother, Tarun Patel.

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The family members were critical of the emergency response, claiming firefighters arrived at the Lafayette Street home but didn’t pour water on the flames right away.

“I asked them why didn’t you spread the water because my sister is there. They said no, we cannot go in,” Tarun Patel said.

The Nassau County fire marshal said the fire was already raging by the time firefighters got to the scene.

“They were hampered by a downed power line that they couldn’t cross, it was actually blocking the front door. They actually jumped over that line and tried to make entry,” said Fire Marshal Michael Uttaro.

The fire marshal said there was also a faulty fire hydrant on Herricks Road, but firefighters found a working hydrant very quickly. Kashmira Patel had been visiting her relatives, gathering to mourn the patriarch of their family who had passed last week.

But now the family is left preparing for another funeral.

A GoFundMe has been started for the family that lost everything in the massive fire. A cause is under investigation.

The Nassau County Legislature voted 17-1 Monday night to to grant Las Vegas Sands a 99-year lease to develop the 72-acre area around the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale. The $5-billion project will include a casino, hotel, entertainment venue and housing.

Opponents against the plan said it would bring traffic congestion and crime to the area. They were still trying to make their case ahead of the vote, as a group that included local mayors joined a Sunday rally condemning the plans. Some have said they’ll take their case to Albany — which ultimately gets the final call in determining where a casino may be built.

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Labor and business leaders are among the supporters who have maintained that the project will create 8,500 jobs and generate an estimate $100 million in annual revenue around the Coliseum. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman also stood in support of the project as well.

“It’s taking a property sitting there for more than four decades and giving it life, to make sure it’s a generator of taxes,” said Matthew Aracich, the president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Nassau and Suffolk Counties.

But it’s far from a done deal. There still needs to be an environment review, and perhaps most importantly, a gaming license. Las Vegas Sands Vice President Ron Reese said the groups knows that winning the lease is just the first step, as nothing can be built there without the gaming license first.

“This is the jumping off point for this process. It’s no the end, it’s the beginning,” said Reese.

In a statement after the approval, Sands Chairman and CEO Robert Goldstein called it “an important step in our company’s efforts to secure a New York gaming license and ultimately develop a world-class hospitality, entertainment and gaming destination…we are proud of the widespread coalition we have built with our new neighbors across Long Island. We are grateful for the trust they have placed in us and look forward to continuing to collaborate with the community.”

Three prized gaming licenses are up for grabs and there are nearly a dozen bids with big name support. Other places looking to get a license include Coney Island, Manhattan, Queens and the Bronx.

Competition is fierce because even though downstate New York is eligible for three licenses, many are expecting Queens racetrack Aqueduct and Yonkers Raceway to each get one because they already have slot machines. That leaves one prize among the remaining contenders: a list that includes a plan to build a Ferris wheel and casino on the east side near the UN and a casino on the roof of Saks Fifth Avenue.

There’s a proposal for a casino at Hudson Yards, as well as a plan to remove the Trump name from Trump Links and build a casino in the Bronx. Those are in competition to plans for a high-rise hotel and casino known as Caesar’s Palace Times Square and a bid to land a casino license next to Citi Field.

The decision will come down to the state-controlled Gaming Commission. When it became an issue in the race for governor in the fall, Gov. Kathy Hochul stayed focused on the economics of a casino.

“We have an opportunity to create thousands of jobs for people in hospitality for people who haven’t come back because of the pandemic,” she said.

Clarity on where a casino would go could come around late spring or early summer.

Many voters in the GOP-leaning Long Island county got their voter ID cards in the mail on Tuesday, and a half-million who got their cards saw a pretty glaring typo: All the cards say voters are registered Democrats, when in fact they might be Republican, independent or members of another political party.

And with the primary a month away, the mistake is sparking confusion.

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“We’re already starting to get phone calls from people, saying ‘I’m a registered Republican, I’m a registered Conservative – how come I’m being identified as a Democrat? Who changed my registration?’ And they’re quite upset about it,” said Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.

The cards were mailed out to let voters know about their polling location. But now the mistake has led to many unhappy people.

“There’s a lot of confusion, there’s a lot of people emotionally upset about this,” said Blakeman.

So who is to blame? Blakeman pointed fingers at the printing company, Phoenix Graphics out of Rochester, which was hired by the county’s Board of Elections.  

The printing company said it was a human error and is now apologizing. A spokesperson called it “an isolated event, but we apologize for our mistake, especially to Nassau County officials, who bear no responsibility for this problem.”

For one registered Republican, the typo now has him questioning the election process.

“I have no faith in this country today, as far as what the politics are,” said George Klein. “I’m going to vote Republican primary day, and Democrat on that is not going to affect it.”

Phoenix Graphics said they are fixing the error at no cost to taxpayers. New corrected voter information cards will be sent out soon.

Speed cameras are now being posted next to stop signs throughout a neighborhood in Nassau County, and not only is it catching drivers by surprise they’re also being hit with fines. Though, some are now questioning: Is that even legal?

It clear that for some drivers in the North Shore village of Saddle Rock, stop signs appear to be optional.

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“They drive very fast and don’t even stop. We walk a lot, so we see [it happen],” said Mira Cohen.

However, that changed about a year ago, Cohen said, when village officials installed several stop sign cameras — and started issuing $60 tickets to violators.

Some village residents have said the camera have slowed drivers and made streets safer, especially for children. But that doesn’t necessarily make them legal.

“I know there’s no state law that authorizes them,” said attorney Richard Rosenberg, who is among the many drivers who have received stop sign camera tickets, but questions whether the village has the authority to issue them.

“I filed a dispute. That’s my basis. There’s no legal authority for it,” said fellow lawyer Robert Zausmer, who is fighting his ticket as well.

After NBC New York consulted several state agencies, it appears they may have an argument. In past cases, traffic cameras were only installed after New York state lawmakers approved them. That never happened in Saddle Rock’s case.

“If they say you require a state law to do it, and there’s no state law, then they had no authority to do it,” Zausmer said.

Saddle Rock’s mayor didn’t respond today to requests for comment, and the village hall was closed.

Several drivers who have received stop sign camera tickets say they don’t plan on paying the fines until there’s clarification about the legality of this entire system.

“Their feelings were pure, they wanted to make it safe. But I don’t know if it was handled in a way that the community feels was appropriate,” said resident Barbara Weisman.

“You beat yourself up, how could I be so damn stupid?”

She only wants to be known as Lee, but it was back in March when the Long Island woman spotted a pop-up window while she was browsing websites online.

“It was red and it took up much of the screen,” explained Lee. “I tried to exit out but it didn’t work.”

On the pop-up was a phone number, which for reasons she still doesn’t know… she called.

“They said ‘this is Microsoft’ and ‘we want you to know your computer has been hacked, but we are going to help you get it back,’” she explained.

Lee says the person on the phone told her they would set up a sting to catch the hackers but she would need to send $49,000 to a bank in Hialeah, Florida.

The plan was elaborate. Lee says the person on the phone gave her a script of what she should tell the bank workers if they asked. And they told her not to go to her usual branch, but a different one because the workers might know the hackers.

“If I had I gone to my branch, the gentleman who knows me there, he would have probably said ‘Lee what are you doing are you sure you want to do this?'”

She went to a different branch where the teller there also asked if she was sure about the transaction. Lee authorized it and four hours later, she came to a realization: “I said holy, I think I’ve been scammed!”

Lee called Chase Bank to report fraud, but she didn’t stop there. She filed a report with the Nassau Police as well as police in Hialeah — the bank where she had sent the money was in Florida.

And then she called the information technology worker who set up her home computers. He told her to immediately shut down her computer. Immediately she got a phone call: “You just turned off your computer.”

Lee has been having trouble getting answers from Chase Bank, all while hating herself for falling victim this scheme.

“I don’t think of myself as that stupid we know the thing your son’s been kidnapped we have your grand children, I’ve gotten those I don’t fall for them but this,” said Lee. “Hook, line and sinker. I could not have been more dumb.”

A Chase spokesperson provided a statement which read, “It’s unfortunate that our customer fell victim to a scam. We are working with the recipient bank to try to recover the funds and will credit the customer if any are recovered.”

On Microsoft’s website there are warnings about such scams. The company telling users “any communication has to be initiated by you” and “don’t call the number in the pop-ups. Microsoft’s error and warning messages never include a phone number.”

From Sunday, April 23, to Sunday, April 30, more than 140 participating restaurants are offering up unique two-course lunches for $22, and/or three-course prix fixe for $27, $37 or $44 daily except Saturdays, when deals cap at 7 p.m. Not sure where to go or how to make sense of the different price offerings? There’s a map for that (below).

First, two things everyone asks:

1. Are tips included in the fixed price? Nope, but Long Island Restaurant Week recommends 20% for good service, especially during this busy week.
2. What about drinks? Sorry, those aren’t included either. The promotion covers appetizer, main and dessert

Have another pressing question? More FAQs here.

Long Island Restaurant Week color codes participating restaurants by those offering deals at each of the four price points mentioned above. The map also highlights which eateries have options for both lunch and dinner.

Alternatively, scroll to the bottom of this page for the full list of locations by Long Island county.

Interested in top restaurants within the five boroughs? Renowned New York Times food critic Pete Wells put out his top 100 this week. And we’ve got a by-borough breakdown.

The Long Island Restaurant Week campaigns, which span 118 miles from Garden City to Montauk, boast nearly 250 participants each fall and more than 160 during the winter. A portion of the proceeds is used to help fight food insecurity via the Island Harvest Food Bank, organizers say.

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Nassau County cops say the vehicle was stolen from Bellerose at some point in the morning. The NYPD first got a call about it around 9:15 a.m. It was recovered at the Queens Boulevard shopping plaza within 90 minutes.

No details on the two people taken into custody, nor the third suspect, were immediately available.

No injuries were reported.

Anyone with information on the heist is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.

Patrick Carey, who was posting the fake images up to within hours of his 2021 arrest, also shared the women’s personal identifying information, including full names, phone numbers and addresses — and encouraged other users on the porn site to harass and threaten them with violence, according to court documents.

Carey pleaded guilty in December to multiple felonies in the deepfake scheme, including promoting a sexual performance by a child, aggravated harassment as a hate crime and stalking.

At Tuesday’s sentencing, the Seaford man was ordered to stay away from each of the 11 victims — a judge issued orders of protection lasting the statutory eight years maximum each. He will also be subject to 10 years of probation on top of the jail time and sex offender requirements.

Carey didn’t address the media after the hearing, but said in court “I can’t chalk up my awful behavior to being a young dumb kid.” He also apologized to the victims and their families, though added he didn’t expect forgiveness.

According to the 2021 indictment, roughly 11 women contacted Nassau County detectives between January and September of that year to report they had found images of themselves on a pornographic website. Many of the women indicated that the images, taken when they were in high school and middle school, were re-posted on the website from their own social media platforms and altered to suggest they were engaging in sexual conduct.

The images had been altered in what is otherwise known as a “deepfake,” a technology whereby Carey convincingly superimposed the victims’ faces on other, separate images of women engaging in sexual conduct. Those posted images were accompanied by their full names, addresses and phone numbers, among other identifying information.

Separately, in November 2020, another woman reported to the Nassau County Police Department’s Special Victims Squad that she found a sexually explicit image of herself, taken when she was underage, on the same porn website.

“The depravity on display by this defendant truly makes my skin crawl,” Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said.

Each of the women had attended MacArthur High School in Levittown and believed that Carey, another former student, was the individual who was altering and posting their images and contact information. Several reported to police that they had received notifications from social media that Carey had “screenshotted” some of the images that appeared altered on the website from their social media accounts.

Most of the posts with images of the victims came from three distinct usernames controlled by Carey, prosecutors said. He was actively posting the images from roughly August 2019 until his arrest in September 2021.

“Patrick Carey targeted these women, altering images he took from their social media accounts and the accounts of their family members and manipulating them using ‘deepfake’ technology to create pornography that he disseminated across the Internet,” DA Donnelly said in a statement Tuesday.

“These incredibly brave women pieced together his depraved conduct and brought it to the authorities. They were not afraid, and they were undeterred,” she added. “Now, Carey will serve jail time and undergo rigorous monitoring for the next 10 years once he is released.”

In court, a victim gave an impact statement on behalf of all those who Carey targeted. Looking in Carey’s direction, she said, “your name will forever give me nightmares and haunt me,” and continued, “At least I’m strong enough to tell you to your face: You make me sick.”

The parents of some victims were not happy about the judge’s six-month sentence, with one father saying “I hope he gets forgiveness from the higher power, because it’s a horrible thing he did.”

Donnelly said the only reason Carey is serving any time whatsoever is because investigators found the single image of an underage girl he used in one of the explicit deepfakes. That means that the other deepfake content he created, all of which was clearly explicit and outrageous, didn’t technically break any laws.

It may be one reason the sentence was considered “light”: New York state currently has no criminal statutes addressing “deepfaked” or digitally manipulated sexually explicit images, which Donnelly called a significant loophole easily exploitable by child pornographers.

She has proposed legislation to establish a number of felony and misdemeanor crimes related to deepfakes to deter such behavior, making it a felony charge and punishable by up to seven years in prison if convicted.

“New York State currently lacks the adequate criminal statutes to protect victims of ‘deepfake’ pornography, both adults and children,” Donnelly said. “That is why I am proposing the legislature take up the ‘Digital Manipulation Protection Act,’ that would close the loopholes in the law that allow sexual predators and child pornographers to create sexually explicit digitally manipulated images and evade prosecution.”

What Are ‘Deepfakes’

A “deepfake” is a video, audio or image that uses machine learning to create a convincing imitation of a real person’s likeness or voice. While some deepfakes can be innocuous, they have also been used for revenge porn, fake news and fraud. 

In another 2021 case, a Pennsylvania mom was accused of creating deepfake videos and photos of underage girls on her daughter’s cheer squad in a prolonged effort to harass them and get them kicked off the team.

Tom Cruise became a target on TikTok as well around the same time.

Developers have raced to better understand and track deepfakes to avoid spreading misinformation. In June, AI researchers at Facebook and Michigan State University say they have developed software that can reveal where deepfakes have come from.

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According to police, Patrick Destine, of Hollis, was involved in a crash with a minivan driven by 54-year-old David McKenzie near Schuman Place and Forest Avenue in Baldwin shortly before 11 p.m. Saturday.

It wasn’t clear what caused the collision, which was later determined to be Destine’s fault, but both drivers got out of their vehicles and started arguing, police said. The crash occurred just steps away from McKenzie’s home.

“[Destine] had run a stop sign and made an unsafe right turn without his headlights on and struck the side of Mr. McKenzie’s van, which had been going westbound,” said Nassau County Police Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick.

Even though prosecutors said that McKenzie told Destine he wouldn’t call the police to report the accident, Destine was still irate.

“When the subject caught up to the victim, he pushed him to the ground and began to violently punch and kick him in the face and neck area,” Lt Fitzpatrick said.

Destine, who had been driving an Infiniti, allegedly started to attack McKenzie, kicking him in the head for an unknown period of time and causing severe head trauma, police say. Cops had to chase him down when they arrived at the scene but apprehended him after a short foot pursuit, officials said.

The victim was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after midnight the following day.

Destine was charged with murder and driving while intoxicated. He was not granted bail at his arraignment, after which time defense attorney Scott Migden said “these are just allegations, we’re not looking to rush to any judgement.”

Police said that Destine has a rap sheet that includes violent felonies, DWI and second-degree murder.

His girlfriend — who was in the car with him at the time and also was arrested near the crash scene — caused a commotion outside the courthouse on Monday. She was seen angrily screaming at McKenzie’s family, and was again arrested, this time by court officers.

McKenzie’s family, meanwhile, held each other for support as they are in shock and mourning.

“David was the type of person who would try to walk away. He hated trouble or getting himself into confrontation,” said Vivienne Williams, a relative. “It’s a wound that’s going to take a very long time to heal, I assure you that.

Maurice Hannah, of Nassau County’s Farmingdale, was last seen on Secatogue Avenue around 11 p.m. Sunday.

He is described as being about 5 feet tall and 100 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing black jeans, a black sweatshirt, gray and green sneakers and a black cap at the time he went missing.

Anyone who has seen the boy is asked to call 911 or Nassau County Police at 516-573-7347. See the full post below.

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It may not look like a whole lot or that big of a drug bust, but the three kilos seized by Nassau County police is enough to potentially kill millions of people, officials said Friday.

“This is an enormous amount of fentanyl,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. “It could wipe out the population of Nassau County…Fentanyl is cheap and plentiful and it’s coming into the county in droves.”

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Donnelly made the announcement of the mega drug bust along with Nassau Police Chief Patrick Ryder and County Executive Bruce Blakeman

“It’s a tragedy that we have to deal with this on a day-to-day basis,” Blakeman said.

The man arrested for trafficking the drugs is Juan Cruz, police said, a 50-year-old from the Bronx. Nassau officials said he’s a major drug dealer, and detectives stopped him thanks to a tip. But Cruz had his own tricks to avoid being identified right away.

“When we went to fingerprint him, he had burnt the fingerprints off his hands, so we could not identify him. So no priors because we don’t have the proper identification,” said Ryder.

“We’ll come down hard on any dealers of illegal drugs in this county selling kilos of poison in our communities, selling to our children and families,” Donnely said.

The fentanyl seized is valued at $60,000. The reason it’s considered to be such a big bust is that fentanyl gets mixed with other drugs, and even a small amount can lead to a deadly overdose.

On the list of Niche’s top 25 places to live in the metropolitan area, 14 of the locations can be found in Nassau County, with the top spot going to Great Neck Gardens. The small, affluent hamlet was given A+ marks for schools and families, and an A in nightlife. Housing earned a grade of B+, while the only category that seemingly needed improvement was diversity, which earned a B-.

Right behind was the neighboring Great Neck Plaza — in fact, each of the top five spots on Niche’s rankings went to spots in Nassau County.

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The hamlets of Herricks and Syosset were 3rd and 4th, respectively, while the village of Kensington took the fifth spot. Kensington was also rated as the best place to raise a family in New York, according to Niche. Syosset was rated the second-best place to raise a family in New York, Niche found.

Based on those rankings, it’s not a surprise the website rated Nassau as the best county in the state. Tompkins County, Albany County and Monroe County also were toward the top of the list.

The best place to live that is not located in Nassau County, according to Niche, was New Jersey’s Ho-Ho-Kus. The Bergen County town was rated as the best suburb in the state, earning A grades in each of the sites categories with the exception of diversity, where it scored a B-. The other top suburbs for New Jersey were Ridgewood and River Edge, both of which are also in Bergen County.

Long Island’s Lake Success was rated 7th, just ahead of the top entry from Westchester County. The hamlet of Hartsdale got A or A- marks in each category except for nightlife, where Niche gave it a B+.

Manhattan was the only part of NYC to make the list, coming in at No. 14. The city received A+ grades for diversity, nightlife and being good for families, and a B+ for public schools — but for obvious reasons scored quite low on housing, in which it got just a C-, according to Niche.

Two neighborhoods in Manhattan also made the list: Chelsea, at 21st, and Morningside Heights, at 24th.

Here’s a full list of the top 25 places to live in the New York City area:

1. Great Neck Gardens, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
2. Great Neck Plaza, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
3. Herricks, NY(Nassau County, Long Island)
4. Syosset, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
5. Kensington, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
6. Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ (Bergen County)
7. Lake Success, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
8. Hartsdale, NY (Westchester County)
9. Ridgewood, NJ (Bergen County)
10. Plainview, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
11. River Edge, NJ (Bergen County)
12. East Williston, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
13. Ardsley, NY (Westchester County)
14. Manhattan, NYC
15. Old Bethpage, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
16. Closter, NJ (Bergen County)
17. Greenvale, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
18. Jericho, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
19. Hewlett Harbor, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
20. East Hills, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
21. Chelsea, Manhattan
22. Searingtown, NY (Nassau County, Long Island)
23. Berkeley Heights, NJ (Union County)
24. Morningside Heights, Manhattan
25. Harrington Park, NJ (Bergen County)