Police & Fire

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Do you recognize this woman? Photo from SCPD

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Suffolk County Police Sixth Precinct Crime Section officers are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate a woman who allegedly stole from a South Setauket store in January.

A woman allegedly stole assorted groceries from Stop & Shop, located at 260 Pond Path, at approximately 1:30 p.m. on January 24. The merchandise was valued at $116.

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information about these incidents can contact Suffolk County Crime Stoppers to submit an anonymous tip by calling 1-800-220-TIPS, utilizing a mobile app which can be downloaded through the App Store or Google Play by searching P3 Tips, or online at www.P3Tips.com. All calls, text messages and emails will be kept confidential.

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Jonathan Nunez

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced on March 13 that Jonathan Nunez, 27, was sentenced to 16 years in prison followed by five years of postrelease supervision for stabbing and seriously injuring a Suffolk County Police Officer in 2021 after an attempted traffic stop.

“Police officers are subjected to threats and danger on the job every time they show up for work. When an honest hardworking police officer is attacked, it’s an attack on our community and order,” said District Attorney Tierney. “This defendant showed no respect for the law, the victim he crashed into nor the officer who attempted to stop him from doing even more damage, and now he will be serving a lengthy prison sentence for his actions.”

On February 6, 2023, Nunez pleaded guilty before County Court Judge, the Honorable Stephen L. Braslow, to each of the charges in the indictment: One count of Aggravated Assault of a Police Officer, a Class B violent felony; One count of Assault in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony; One count of Assault on a Police Officer, a Class C violent felony; Two counts of Assault in the Second Degree, a Class D violent felony; One count of Assault in the Third Degree, a Class A misdemeanor; One count of Resisting Arrest, a Class A misdemeanor; 2 One count of Reckless Driving, an Unclassified misdemeanor; One count of Leaving the Scene of an MVA with Injury, a misdemeanor; and One count of Driving While Impaired by Drugs, an unclassified misdemeanor.

According to court documents and the defendant’s statements at his guilty plea allocution, Suffolk County Police Officer Christopher Racioppo observed a vehicle being driven in an erratic manner and with its lights off on South Ocean Avenue in Patchogue on April 10, 2021, at approximately 10:30 p.m. When Officer Racioppo activated his emergency lights in an attempt to pull the vehicle over, Nunez, the driver, sped away and the officer pursued him. Nunez subsequently crashed into another vehicle at a high rate of speed, totaling both vehicles and causing minor injury to the other driver. Nunez then exited his vehicle and, despite directives from Officer Racioppo to stop, he fled on foot. Officer Racioppo chased Nunez into a backyard where Nunez stabbed Officer Racioppo in his upper left leg, severing his femoral artery. Witnesses and other responding officers at the scene were able to restrain Nunez and render lifesaving aid to Officer Racioppo.

Officer Racioppo was in extremely critical condition after losing nearly his entire blood supply. He was first transported to Long Island Community Hospital and then brought to Stony Brook University Hospital. After being intubated, Officer Racioppo underwent life-saving blood transfusions and surgery. On March 13, 2023, Judge Braslow sentenced Nunez to 16 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision.

Below is the original press release:

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced on Feb. 6 the guilty plea of Jonathan Nunez, 27, of Centereach for stabbing and seriously injuring a Suffolk County Police Officer in 2021 after an attempted traffic stop.

“This is yet another stark reminder of the dangers that our police officers face every day. This defendant admitted that he nearly killed a police officer who was merely conducting a simple traffic stop,” said District Attorney Tierney. “Fortunately, this officer did not lose his life, but he was seriously injured and had to undergo surgery and blood transfusions in order to stay alive, and all because he was just doing his job.”

On February 6,  Nunez pleaded guilty to each of the charges in the indictment, namely: One count of Aggravated Assault of a Police Officer, a Class B violent felony; One count of Assault in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony; One count of Assault on a Police Officer, a Class C violent felony; Two counts of Assault in the Second Degree, a Class D violent felony; One count of Assault in the Third Degree, a Class A misdemeanor; One count of Resisting Arrest, a Class A misdemeanor; One count of Reckless Driving, an Unclassified misdemeanor; 2 One count of Leaving the Scene of an MVA with Injury, a misdemeanor; and One count of Driving While Impaired by Drugs, an Unclassified misdemeanor.

According to court documents and the defendant’s statements at his guilty plea allocution, Suffolk County Police Officer Christopher Racioppo observed a vehicle being driven in an erratic manner and with its lights off, on South Ocean Avenue in Patchogue on April 10, 2021, at approximately 10:30 p.m. When Officer Racioppo activated his emergency lights in an attempt to pull the vehicle over, Nunez, the driver, sped away and the officer pursued him. Nunez subsequently crashed into another vehicle at a high rate of speed, totaling both vehicles and causing minor injury to the other driver.

Nunez then exited his vehicle and, despite directives from Officer Racioppo to stop, he fled on foot. Officer Racioppo chased Nunez into a backyard where Nunez stabbed Officer Racioppo in his upper left leg, severing his femoral artery. Witnesses and other responding officers at the scene were able to restrain Nunez and render lifesaving aid to Officer Racioppo. Officer Racioppo was in extremely critical condition after losing nearly his entire blood supply.

He was first transported to Long Island Community Hospital and then brought to Stony Brook University Hospital. After being intubated, Officer Racioppo underwent life-saving blood transfusions and surgery. Nunez is due back in court on March 13, 2023, and is expected to be sentenced to 16 years in prison followed by five years of post-release supervision.

Criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusatory instruments. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.

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Do you recognize this man? Photo from SCPD

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Suffolk County Police Sixth Precinct Crime Section officers are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate a man who allegedly stole from a South Setauket store in December.

A man allegedly stole 37 packages of seafood from Stop & Shop, located at 260 Pond Path, at approximately 2 p.m. on December 20. The merchandise was valued at approximately $990.

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information about these incidents can contact Suffolk County Crime Stoppers to submit an anonymous tip by calling 1-800-220-TIPS, utilizing a mobile app which can be downloaded through the App Store or Google Play by searching P3 Tips, or online at www.P3Tips.com. All calls, text messages and emails will be kept confidential.

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Do you recognize these two men? Photo from SCPD

Just released! Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Suffolk County Police Fourth Squad detectives are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate the men who allegedly used stolen credit cards at a Centereach store last September.

Two men allegedly purchased items from Walmart, located at 161 Centereach Mall, on September 23 at 1:54 p.m., using credit cards that were stolen earlier that day.

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information about these incidents can contact Suffolk County Crime Stoppers to submit an anonymous tip by calling 1-800-220-TIPS, utilizing a mobile app which can be downloaded through the App Store or Google Play by searching P3 Tips, or online at www.P3Tips.com. All calls, text messages and emails will be kept confidential.

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File photo

Suffolk County Police Seventh Squad detectives are investigating a motor vehicle crash that killed two
people in Manorville on Feb. 6.

Kevin Vollmer was driving a 2019 Ford van southbound on Wading River Road when his vehicle left
the road and struck a tree at the intersection with North Street at 3:13 p.m. Vollmer, 50, of Huntington Station, and his passenger, Antoinette Mullings-Joseph, 49, of Huntington, were pronounced dead at the scene.

The vehicle was impounded for a safety check. Detectives are asking anyone with information on the
crash to contact the Seventh Squad at 631-852-8752.

Police car. Stock photo

Suffolk County Police Sixth Squad detectives are investigating a motor vehicle crash that killed a
pedestrian in Farmingville on Feb. 5.

Steven Godden was driving a 2022 Mercedes-Benz northbound on North Ocean Avenue at Granny Road
when he swerved in an attempt to avoid hitting Roland Degroff, who was running east across the
roadway at the intersection against the direction of traffic control devices at 7:40 p.m. The Mercedes
struck Degroff, who was then struck by a 2021 Hyundai Sonata being operated by Yair Pacheco.

Degroff, 58, of Port Jefferson Station, was transported to Long Island Community Hospital in Patchogue
where he was pronounced dead. Neither Godden, 41, of Mount Sinai, or Pacheco, 44, of Coram, or two
passengers in the Mercedes-Benz, were injured.

The vehicles were both impounded for safety checks. Detectives are asking anyone with information on
the crash to contact the Sixth Squad at 631-854-8652.

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Suffolk County Police arrested a teenage driver on Feb. 4 following a motor vehicle crash that seriously injured two people in Dix Hills.

A 17-year-old female was driving a 2010 Honda Civic with three passengers eastbound on Vanderbilt Parkway, one-quarter mile east of McCulloch Drive, when she lost control of vehicle and crashed into the woods at approximately 9:15 p.m.

Two of the passengers, Kenia Perez and Santos Mendez, both 18-years-old, were transported to local hospitals for treatment of serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. The third passenger, Yanci Velis-Mendoza, 21 and the 17-year-old driver were treated at local hospitals for minor injuries. 

The 17-year-old was arrested and charged with Driving While Intoxicated. She will be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip at a later date. 

The Honda was impounded for a safety check. Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call the Second Squad at 631-854-8252. 

A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

Pixabay photo

The Suffolk County Police Department has observed a recent uptick in stolen vehicles and now urges residents to take precautions.

Detective Richard Marra of SCPD offered a brief history of the crime phenomenon in a phone interview. While vehicle theft cases have been recurrent, the detective noted that the crime is relatively preventable. 

“Ninety percent of the cars that are stolen are probably stolen because [drivers] leave the key fobs in the car,” he said.

Marra said the police department first noticed the trend about three years ago when an organized out-of-state group started targeting luxury models.

“We had a group of guys coming out of New Jersey, mostly from Newark, and they would go to the more affluent neighborhoods,” he said. “They’d come in a van, walk down the street and look for any kind of foreign car.”

Thieves often sought out vehicles with the mirrors folded open. This, Marra said, was an indicator that the vehicle was unlocked. 

If the key fob was left inside, they would easily steal the vehicle. If not, they may rummage through it for hidden valuables.

“Three years ago, it was crazy,” Marra said. “It slowed down a little bit in the last eight months, but we still have a lot of thefts of cars because the key fobs are left in the car.”

The SCPD detective said that the New Jersey bunch often resold their stolen cars on the secondary market. In a highly coordinated manner, they would steal the cars, drive to New Jersey, remove any GPS trackers and then prepare them for international shipment.

“When they had a container ready, they put them on the container, and it was usually going to South Africa,” Marra said.

While the group from New Jersey had targeted luxury models, some vehicle thieves are less interested in the car’s resale value than its utility. 

Marra said some would use the vehicle to temporarily transport drugs or steal catalytic converters, then discard it. While victims of this variety of theft often retrieved their stolen cars, its condition could be irreversibly impaired.

“The ones that are taking just any car — anything that happens to be left with the fob in it — may drive it around for a day or two and then leave it somewhere,” he said. “Sometimes it’s destroyed, sometimes it’s not, but most of the time it’s not in the shape you left it in.”

The spike in vehicle theft follows another auto theft crime that has hit the county, the theft of catalytic converters. [See story, “Catalytic converter theft on the rise in Suffolk County,” TBR News Media website, Feb. 26, 2022.]

Marra indicated that catalytic converter theft has fallen off substantially in recent months due primarily to coordinated arrests conducted with the federal government.

For residents to protect themselves from vehicle theft, he said there is a simple solution — taking their fobs with them as they exit their cars. 

“If people would take their key fobs with them and never leave them in the car, I’d say 90 to 95% of the car thefts would go down,” the detective said. “You just have to keep your keys in your pocket instead of leaving them in the console or the glove compartment.”

He added, “I know it’s nice to just jump in and drive away — but then everybody could jump in and drive away.”

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Do you recognize this man? Photo from SCPD

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Suffolk County Police Fourth Precinct Crime Section officers are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate the man who allegedly stole merchandise from an Islandia store.
A man allegedly stole shoes from Famous Footwear, located at 1770 Veterans Memorial Highway, on January 16 at approximately 2 p.m.

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information about these incidents can contact Suffolk County Crime Stoppers to submit an anonymous tip by calling 1-800-220-TIPS, utilizing a mobile app which can be downloaded through the App Store or Google Play by searching P3 Tips, or online at www.P3Tips.com. All calls, text messages and emails will be kept
confidential.

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Police car. Stock photo

Suffolk County Police Fourth Squad detectives are investigating a motor vehicle crash that killed a pedestrian in Nesconset on Feb. 2.

Equislaure Gabriel was driving a 2005 Honda CRV on eastbound Nesconset Highway, east of Terry Road, when her vehicle struck a pedestrian in the roadway at approximately 9 p.m. The pedestrian, Gustavo Carino, 31, of Washington Heights, New York,  was pronounced dead at the scene by a physician assistant from the Office of the Suffolk County Medical Examiner. Gabriel, 27, of Nesconset, was not injured.

The vehicle was impounded for a safety check.

Detectives are asking anyone with information on the crash to contact the Fourth Squad at 631-854-8452.