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South Huntington

A new sign bears witness to the toll Sept. 11, 2001 continues to exact from South Huntington and the surrounding communities.

Town of Huntington officials unveiled a sign dedicating Iceland Drive as “NYPD Officer Mark J. Natale Way” in honor of a South Huntington resident who died of a 9/11-related illness. About 100 family members, friends and his former colleagues gathered for the Sept. 14 ceremony on what would have been his 56th birthday.

“Officer Natale dearly loved his family, friends, colleagues and community as the number of people gathered here to celebrate his life today shows the impact he made on all of us,” Huntington Supervisor Chad Lupinacci (R) said. “The sign we are unveiling today is a reminder of his legacy.”

“The sign we are unveiling today is a reminder of [Mark Natale’s] legacy.”

— Chad Lupinacci

Natale was a South Huntington native who graduated from Walt Whitman High School before joining the New York City Police Department in 1985. He was stationed with the 94th Precinct in Greenpoint when the planes hit the World Trade Center towers during the 9/11 attacks. Natale guided dust-covered people fleeing lower Manhattan over the bridges into Brooklyn and onto ferries to New Jersey. In the days following the attacks, he stood guard at the gates surrounding ground zero.

Natale died May 4 of brain cancer at his South Huntington home, which was brought about by his exposure to the scene.

“We have not as a nation or region spent enough time honoring and remembering those people in the aftermath of 9/11 who went into harm’s way and paid the same exact supreme sacrifice with their lives as those who perished that day,” Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (D) said. “Today, we proudly recognize Officer Mark Natale as a hero.”

This was the second ceremony Huntington town officials have hosted in as many months, dedicating a street in honor of first responders who have died of 9/11 related illnesses.

“The fact of the matter is that more uniformed and un-uniformed personnel who took part in the search, rescue and recovery operations that perish will surpass the number of people who were killed on Sept. 11, 2011,” Suffolk County Legislator Tom Donnelly (D-Deer Park) said. “We can never, ever repay people like Mark Natale for what they did that day, or in the weeks and months afterward.”

“When you pass by NYPD Officer Mark J. Natale Way, take a moment to look up at the sign and smile.”

— Mayra Natale

Donnelly said the health care issues faced by 9/11 responders is of “epidemic proportions” and estimated one individual per week is dying as a result of their service following the attacks.

“[Mark Natale’s] battle and bravery he demonstrated after 9/11 also serves as a beacon of hope for those who continue to fight 9/11-related illnesses,” Suffolk County Legislator William “Doc” Spencer (D-Centerport) said. “By naming this street and showing his acts of bravery, he provides who to those who are still out there fighting.”

Natale’s wife, Mayra, thanked all those who attended the ceremony alongside the couple’s three children Dominick, Catherine and Lauren for honoring her husband’s memory along with one special request.

“We all lost a piece of our hearts when we lost Mark,” she said. “He will live on eternally in our good deeds and the love we share with one another. When you pass by NYPD Officer Mark J. Natale Way, take a moment to look up at the sign and smile.”

David Thomspon. Photo from SCPD

Suffolk County police have arrested a man for allegedly driving while ability impaired after his vehicle struck and killed a pedestrian in South Huntington April 7.

David R. Thompson was operating a 2014 Chevrolet Equinox eastbound on Jericho Turnpike at approximately 9:30 p.m. when his vehicle struck a pedestrian who was attempting to cross Jericho Turnpike at Oakwood Road in South Huntington.

The pedestrian, Anthony J. Santiago, 54, of Huntington Station, was transported by Huntington Community First Aid Squad to Huntington Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Thompson, 75, of Huntington, was arrested and charged with driving while ability impaired. He is being held at the 2nd Precinct and was scheduled to be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip.

The vehicle was impounded for a safety check. The investigation is ongoing. Detectives are asking anyone with information about the crash to call the Major Case Unit at 631-852-6555.

Saint Anthony's High School in South Huntington. Photo from Google Maps.

A student of St. Anthony’s High School in South Huntington was killed in a car crash this weekend, according to school officials.

Anthony Pagano, senior at Saint Anthony’s High School. Photo from Facebook.

Brother Gary Cregan, principal of St. Anthony’s High School, announced that senior Anthony Pagano was involved in a serious car crash this weekend. Details of the accident were not immediately made available. Pagano played on the Friars’ varsity baseball team in spring 2017.

“Death is never easy, but the death of a young person is particularly heartbreaking and difficult to accept,” Cregan wrote in his message. “As Roman Catholics, we must rely on our faith to give us strength in the face of tragedy, and to help us understand why a young man on the verge of adulthood would be taken from us far too soon.”

The principal offered his condolences to the family, noting Pagano’s brother, Joseph, is a sophomore at St. Anthony’s.

Visitation hours will be held Feb. 21, from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m.; and on Feb. 22, from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. at M.A. Connell Funeral Home located at 934 New York Ave. in Huntington. A funeral Mass will be celebrated Feb 23 at 9:30 a.m. at St. Elizabeth’s Church, 175 Wolf Hill Road in Melville. Interment will follow at Locust Valley Cemetery in Locust Valley.

Huntington Manor firefighters work to put quell the flames on a car fire at the South Huntington Library parking lot. photo by Steve Silverman.
Huntington Manor firefighters work to put quell the flames on a car fire at the South Huntington Library parking lot. photo by Steve Silverman.
Huntington Manor firefighters work to put quell the flames on a car fire at the South Huntington Library parking lot. photo by Steve Silverman.

The Huntington Manor Fire Department responded to a car fire in the parking lot of the South Huntington Library on Pidgeon Hill Road Sunday night, Aug. 21.

The fire department got to the scene at about 9:10 p.m. and used two fire engines to quickly extinguish the fire in the BMW Sedan, under the command of Assistant Chiefs Mike DePasquale, Jon Hoffmann and Chuck Brady. There were no injuries reported, but the car was destroyed in the flames.

Melissa Buchanan mugshot from SCPD

A woman was charged with animal cruelty after police found a dog dead and several other animals that had not been cared for in her home.

Officers responded to an apartment on Beverly Road in South Huntington on Thursday night after a landlord reported hearing a dog excessively barking and “realizing she had not seen her tenant for a few days,” the Suffolk County Police Department said in a statement. The responders found two miniature Australian shepherd dogs, one of them dead, as well as two lizards and a cat — all of which had not been cared for, police said.

The tenant, 27-year-old Melissa Buchanan, returned while police were at the scene and “admitted to police she had not been home for several days.”

She was charged with six counts of animal cruelty for allegedly abandoning the animals.

Attorney information for Buchanan was not immediately available Friday morning.

Huntington Town’s animal control department took possession of the surviving dog and cat, while the Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which worked with the police to bring charges against Buchanan, made arrangements for the lizards.

Drawing a crowd
Police say a 22-year-old Selden man arrested at 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 5 on Broadway in Port Jefferson repeatedly engaged in violent behavior directed toward a nearby crowd.

Out of control
Police said a 56-year-old Riverhead man was arrested on Sept. 5 on the corner of Chereb Lane and Route 112 in Port Jefferson Station. The man was in possession of a controlled substance.

On Sept. 2, police arrested a 25-year-old man from Holtsville for criminal possession of a controlled substance on the corner of Route 25A and Miller Avenue in Shoreham-Wading River. Police found Suboxone when he was detained at 4:10 p.m.

Second time’s the charm
A 29-year-old man from Mount Sinai was arrested in Port Jefferson Station on Sept. 4 after a car crash. Police discovered the man, who had been driving a 1999 Dodge south on Jayne Boulevard at the time of the collision, had been drinking alcohol and was operating the vehicle without interlock, a device that prevents the vehicle from starting if the driver’s blood alcohol level exceeds the legal limit. The man was obligated to use the device due to a prior drunk driving conviction.

Let there be rock
Police arrested a 21-year-old Centereach man on Sept. 5 after he made verbal threats and struck an unidentified man with a large rock.

Cross-stealing
A 51-year-old man from North Patchogue was arrested at the 6th Precinct in Selden on Sept. 3. Police said the man stole women’s apparel and accessories from Smith Haven Mall.

It happened in the tresspast
An 18-year-old male from Holtsville was arrested in Selden on Sept. 3, about two weeks after police say he trespassed at Sachem East High School.

It’s electric
Police arrested a 61-year-old man from Rocky Point for reckless endangerment on Glenwood Road on Sept. 3. Police said the man had tampered with an electric meter in July.

Calling shotgun
On Sept. 5 at 1:30 p.m., an unidentified person stole a shotgun from a residence on Forest Avenue in Port Jefferson Station.

Steal like an eagle
Police said an unknown person stole lawn sculptures from someone’s yard on Lenox Street in Port Jefferson Station on Sept. 3. One of the pieces was a wooden eagle sculpture.

Entering and breaking
An unknown person stole cash, a laptop and a laptop bag from a home on Middle Court in Miller Place. The incident happened on Sept. 5. Police said the person also broke the window on the driver’s side of a 2001 Ford Mustang that was parked in the driveway.

Clean this
On Sept. 6 at 4:04 p.m., the front glass window of the dry cleaning shop on Echo Avenue in Miller Place was broken.

A jewel of a thief
On Sept. 5, police said an unidentified man took a box containing a bracelet without paying from the Kohl’s on Route 25A in Rocky Point.

Ponti-attack
An unknown person damaged the rear passenger door and tire on the right side of a 2008 Pontiac on Sept. 4 on Route 25 in Selden.

Something fishy
On Sept. 6 someone stole fish and other merchandise from the Shop Rite on College Road in Selden. Police said the person left the store with the stolen items and got into a car that was waiting outside the store.

Cig-nificant steal
Police said on Sept. 5 an unknown person stole money and cigarettes from a 2010 Jeep and a 2005 Saturn. The incident occurred on Middle Court in Miller Place.

Not friends anymore
An unidentified person stole a license plate off a 1988 Jeep on Friendship Drive in Rocky Point. Police said the incident happened on Aug. 30 at noon but was reported on Sept. 2.

Incoming message
On Sept. 4 an unidentified person or persons damaged a mailbox on North Howell Avenue in Centereach.

To Infiniti and beyond
Police said someone broke a window of a 2011 Infiniti on Tree Road in Centereach on Sept. 4. Police were unsure which window was damaged.

Wanted for grand larceny
Suffolk County Police are seeking the public’s assistance in identifying and locating the man who used a stolen credit card at two locations last month.
Police said a man used a stolen credit card at Speedway Gas in Lake Grove and Stop and Shop in Ronkonkoma on Aug. 6. The man fled in a red vehicle. A purse containing the credit card that was used had been stolen from a vehicle that was broken into at the LA Fitness parking lot, located at 110 New Moriches Road in Lake Grove on Aug. 6 between 6:30 and 7:30 a.m.
Suffolk County Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward of up to $5,000 for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS (8477). All calls will be kept confidential.

Cars vandalized
Suffolk County Police are investigating whether or not a string of incidents of criminal mischief at Stony Hollow apartments on Old Town Road in Port Jefferson Station is related. Residents reported to cops on the morning of Sept. 3 that a number of vehicles were vandalized: a windshield on a Nissan Sentra was shattered; rear passenger windows on a 2007 Mazda and a 2014 Honda were broken; and someone took a GPS cable and damaged the windshield wiper control lever on another vehicle. The incidents are estimated to have taken place sometime between 10 p.m. on Sept. 2 and 4:15 a.m. on Sept. 3. 

Shove off
A 19-year-old man from Clarksburg was arrested in Stony Brook on Sept. 3 at 11:08 p.m. and charged with second-degree harassment. Police said the man shoved a male police officer in the middle of the roadway on North County Road in Stony Brook.

In the dark
Police arrested a 21-year-old man from Stony Brook on Sept. 3 at 11:21 p.m. and charged him with driving while intoxicated. Cops said the man was driving a 2014 Mitsubishi with no lights on when he was pulled over and arrested.

Emergency heroin
A 37-year-old man from Farmingville was arrested in Stony Brook on Sept. 2 and charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Police said that at 10:10 p.m. the man possessed heroin in the trauma room of Stony Brook University Hospital’s emergency room.

Sloppy DWI
Police arrested a 21-year-old man from East Setauket on Sept. 4 at 1:33 a.m. and charged him with driving while intoxicated. Cops said the man was driving a 2005 Hyundai on Sheep Pasture Road and was pulled over after they observed him failing to maintain his lane, crossing over the yellow lines and into the shoulder.

Not staying in the lines
A 39-year-old woman from Bohemia was arrested in Setauket-East Setauket on Sept. 4 and charged with driving while intoxicated. Police said that at about 3 a.m. the woman was pulled over after she was observed failing to maintain her lane, crossing over the double yellow lines in a 2013 Jeep, on Lower Sheep Pasture Road.

Jewels and jams
Cops arrested a 44-year-old Selden woman on Sept. 4 at 8 p.m. on Nesconset Highway in Setauket-East Setauket and charged her with petit larceny. Police said she took jewelry and headphones from Kohl’s department store on Nesconset Highway.

Taking the high road
Suffolk County police arrested an 18-year-old man from St. James in Smithtown on Sept. 5 at 12:35 a.m., and charged him with operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs in the first degree. Police said the man was driving northbound on Route 25A in Smithtown in a 2004 Jeep and failed to maintain his lane of travel.

Pole-iced
A 44-year-old man from St. James was arrested in Smithtown on Sept. 5 and charged with operating a motor vehicle and leaving the scene of an accident with property damage. Police said the accident occurred on Moriches Road in Smithtown on Sept. 4 at 6:35 a.m. — cops said he drove a 1995 Chevy van north on the road, hit a utility pole and fled the scene. He was arrested at the 4th Precinct the next day at 10:30 a.m.

Bud Light blues
Two 17-year-old girls were arrested at the 4th Precinct on Sept. 4, and each was charged with petit larceny for stealing $25 worth of Bud Light beer from Gulf gas station on Express Dive South in Ronkonkoma, on Aug. 28 at 12:30 a.m. One girl was from Ronkonkoma, the other from Holbrook.

Beer me!
A 46-year-old man from Smithtown was arrested in Nissequogue on Sept. 4, at about 8 p.m. and charged for selling alcohol with a revoked license. Police said the man served beer and wine at an event on Long Beach Town Park.

Hug it out
Police received a report of a man and woman pushing each other after getting into a verbal dispute at Watermill Caterers on Nesconset Highway in Smithtown on Sept. 3 at about 10:20 p.m.

Fender, hood damaged
Someone damaged the hood and right fender of a 2015 Nissan parked at a home on Kental Lane in Nesconset. The incident occurred after midnight on Sept. 3.

Check-mate
Someone wrote a bad check out to AAA maintenance in Smithtown on West Jericho Turnpike on Nov. 4 last year. There have been no arrests.

Got mail?
Someone damaged the mailbox of a Grove Road home in Kings Park on Sept. 3 at 6 p.m. There have been no arrests.

Pickpocketed
Someone took a pocketbook with money in it from an unlocked 2001 Toyota parked on County Road 14 in Kings Park on Sept. 2 at 11 a.m. There have been no arrests.

Bad hair day
Someone broke the driver side window of a 2004 Toyota at Pat’s Place Hair Salon on Lake Avenue in St. James on Sept. 6 at 1 p.m. There have been no arrests.

Wheeled away
Someone stole a black Raleigh speed bike from a driveway on Lake Avenue in St. James on Sept. 4 at 8 p.m. There have been no arrests.

Three’s a crowd
Police arrested a 32-year-old woman from Wantagh and charged her with leaving the scene of a crime and property damage. Cops said that on Sept. 5 at about 2 a.m. the woman struck a 2015 Toyota on High Street in Huntington. Driving a 2005 Nissan, she hit the Toyota and the Toyota then struck a 2013 Nissan. Significant damage was caused to all three vehicles. The woman then fled the scene and was arrested later that day at the 2nd Precinct.

High time
Cops arrested a 21-year-old man from Huntington Station on Sept. 3 and charged him with unlawful possession of marijuana . He was arrested at the corner of 5th Avenue and West 11th Street at 12:40 p.m. inside a 2012 Nissan.

Coke in sheep’s clothing
Cops arrested a 52-year-old man from Huntington Station at Tremont Court in South Huntington on Sept. 3  at 4:25 p.m. and charged him with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Police said he had a large quantity of cocaine in a cigarette pack.

Heroin spotted
A 20-year-old man from Dix Hills was arrested in Dix Hills on Sept. 2 and charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Cops said he was in a 2010 Jeep in the driver’s seat at Otsego Park in Dix Hills at 10:50 p.m. when an officer observed heroin on the center console of the vehicle.

Partying too hard
Cops arrested a 41-year-old man from Massapequa on Sept. 6 at about 7:30 a.m. off the road on East Jericho Turnpike in Huntington and charged him with driving while ability impaired by drugs, with a prior conviction in the past 10 years. Police said they found the man passed out, slumped over the steering wheel of a vehicle with the key in the ignition and the engine running.

Weed on display
Cops arrested a 24-year-old man on Sept. 4 and charged him with criminal possession of marijuana in the fifth degree. Police said he was on the corner of West Shore Road and Mill Dam Road in Huntington with a large quantity of marijuana in public view.

The wrong kind of batting team
Two men reported being jumped by multiple men on Sept. 9 at 4 a.m. in Huntington Station on Broadway. The suspects kicked and punched the victims multiple times with a baseball bat, causing a broken nose and many contusions. Both men were transported to Huntington Hospital to be treated. Nothing was stolen from either.

Not so luck-key
A woman found her gray 2008 Honda keyed on the driver’s side in the Walt Whitman Mall parking lot in South Huntington on Sept. 6. She reported the incident at 10:50 p.m.

Chasing the Chase imposter
A man said someone withdrew money from his Chase bank account without his permission on Sept. 4 at 9 a.m. in Dix Hills.

Pickpocketed in plain sight
A woman reported that she left her pocketbook in the front seat of her car on 2nd Avenue in Huntington Station on Sept. 5. She saw a suspect open the door of her car, remove her pocketbook and then flee the scene at 11:20 p.m.