Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Suffolk County Police 2nd Squad Detectives are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate the man and woman who allegedly used stolen credit cards at a Melville store and two Commack stores in September.
Credit cards were stolen from a purse in a shopping cart inside Trader Joes, located at 5900 Jericho Turnpike in Commack, Sept. 17 at approximately 1:15 p.m. Later that day, a man and woman used the stolen credit cards at Home Depot, located at 65 Crooked Hill Road in Commack, as well as at two separate Dick’s Sporting Goods, located at 6070 Jericho Turnpike in Commack and 870 Walt Whitman Road in Melville.
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.
Cops said that over the past week there have been a rash of car thefts and vehicle break-ins within the Three Village area.
Now several Port Jefferson residents have also reported vehicles were stolen from their property as well, though police said they are still investigating if the same perpetrators were committing the robberies in both areas.
Suffolk County Police provided TBR News Media a list of 16 total car thefts and break ins. The list shows a total of four cars were stolen from residences in Stony Brook Aug. 23. Two of those vehicles, a 2020 Nissan and a 2019 Volkswagen were recovered — the former was found in Connecticut while the latter was located in Stony Brook. Two other cars, a 2016 Mazda and a 2009 Acura, have so far not been located, according to police.
The 12 other incidences were petit larcenies of property from cars in Stony Brook, Setauket and Old Field. Several items electronics like laptops or earphones, while others were purses, money and car keys. All incidents took place within the 6th precinct.
Suffolk County Police Detective Lt. Sean Beran said all incidents were from unlocked vehicles. The investigation is ongoing, according to Beran, though he added there are a couple of people of interest.
Uniformed and plainclothes personnel have been patrolling the area, and the Special Operations Team has been assigned to the case. Beran said no additional break-ins or thefts were reported after Aug. 23 in the Three Village community.
Beran said it’s important for car owners to remember to lock their vehicles, make sure they have their car key FOB and remove belongings even when parking a car in a driveway.
Police confirmed that more car thefts have since been reported by locals in the Port Jefferson area as well. A man in the Harbor Hills section of the village on Landing Lane said two cars were stolen from his driveway at around 1:45 a.m. Friday, Aug. 28.
One vehicle was a 2020 Honda Accord and another was a 2016 Honda CRV, according to the Port Jefferson man’s posts on social media. Cops also said that a 2013 Mercedes was also stolen from Sands Lane in Port Jeff. That vehicle has since been recovered nearby.
Police said it is still under investigation whether the Three Village and Port Jeff car thefts are connected.
People can contact the 6th Precinct with information at 631-854-8652 or submit an anonymous tip by calling 1-800-220-TIPS (8477), 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.
Security footage of the man police said allegedly stole a tractor from Port Jeff Station. Photo from SCPD
Suffolk County Police said a man who allegedly stole a tractor from the Vistas of Port Jefferson, then used it to seemingly deliberately hit a man at a gas station in Coram.
Security footage of the man police said allegedly stole a tractor from Port Jeff Station. Photo from SCPD
Police said the unknown man allegedly stole a small two-door compact John Deere tractor with a red front plow April 20 from the retirement community located at 588 North Bicycle Path in Port Jefferson Station.
A gas station employee came out to talk to the man in the tractor. Police said the employee believed the tractor had been stolen, and was attempting to call police when the alleged criminal started positioning the tractor as if to hit him. The man then gunned the tractor, hitting the employee who fell back and sprawled on the ground. The tractor then sped off down the road.
Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward of up to $5,000 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 P3Tips.com.
Two men smashed the front window of the Rocky Point Barbershop in the Rocky Point business district and stole store memorabilia Feb. 20, store security camera footage shows.
Security camera footage from Rocky Point Barbershop shows two men robbing the front display case. Image from Rocky Point Barbershop
The two individuals, one wearing a hood and the other a bandana, broke the front window of the barbershop, located at 576 Route 25A at around 2:45 a.m., store owner Yavuz Can said. The robbers didn’t manage to trip any alarms as they went in, despite motion sensors on the inside. Store employees did not learn about the breakin until later in the morning, and police were contacted around 8 a.m.
The shop, known in the area for its $10 men’s haircuts, kept a number of expensive memorabilia in the front case under the register. Can said the men stole hundreds of dollars worth of collectible coins from the case. The robbers also took display hand grenades and eight display knives, which the shop owner said were valued at about $60 each. Also stolen was a 20-gauge shotgun and shells, worth around $175. Yavuz added the broken front door glass would cost the store around another $400 to replace. The robbers did not steal from the cash register.
“This hasn’t happened before,” the shop owner said.
One of the figures captured on video at the break-in. Photo from Rocky Point Barbershop
Suffolk County Police confirmed the shop had been broken into that morning and that items were taken, though they could not confirm any information on the ongoing investigation.
Yavuz asked anybody who might recognize the people in the video to contact Suffolk County Police.
Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward of up to $5,000 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, texting “SCPD” and your message to “CRIMES” (274637) or by email at www.tipsubmit.com.
All calls, text messages and emails are kept confidential.
An East Setauket resident was arrested May 30 for allegedly stealing millions from elderly victims in a Ponzi scheme, according to a statement from the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office.
Steven Pagartanis, 58, was arraigned in Suffolk County District Court in Central Islip on two counts of first-degree grand larceny, a B felony, and two counts of second-degree grand larceny, a C felony. According to the district attorney’s office, Pagartanis allegedly stole approximately $7.5 million from his victims. Pagartanis was released following the arraignment on supervised release with GPS monitoring.
Steven Pagartanis allegedly stole approximately $7.5 million from elderly victims. Photo from Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office
“The defendant described to victims a great investment they could make by trusting him with their hard-earned money,” District Attorney Tim Sini said. “In some cases, victims gave the defendant their life savings. The defendant then used those monies to pay off earlier investors in his scheme and to fund his personal lifestyle.”
Pagartanis worked as a financial planner and is the owner of Omega Planning Associates, a financial planning business located at 100 North Country Road in East Setauket. He allegedly told victims he was investing their money in Genesis Land Development Corp., a building and land development company based in Calgary, Canada, according to Sini’s office.
Pagartanis then allegedly deposited the funds into an account called “Genesis Holding” and used the money to pay back prior investors in the scheme. The defendant also allegedly used some of the money on personal expenses, including retail purchases and dining.
“We’ve identified well over a dozen victims and we believe there are more victims out there,” Sini said.
The case was brought to the attention of the district attorney’s office by a family member of one of the victims. The four victims included in the felony complaints, who range in age from 64 to 83 years old, began investing in the scheme in 2013, according to the statement.
Pursuant to a concurrent investigation by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc., Pagartanis was barred from acting as a securities broker April 10, according to FINRA’s website, brokercheck.finra.org. The website lists customer disputes as well as a judgement/lien.
In addition to the criminal charges, a civil lawsuit was filed against Pagartanis May 30 by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, according to Sini’s office.
If convicted, Pagartanis faces a maximum sentence of eight to 25 years in prison on each count of first-degree grand larceny and a maximum sentence of five to 15 years in prison on each count of second-degree grand larceny. Pagartanis is due back in court July 24.
An attempt to reach Pagartanis was unsuccessful. When calling his office, a message played stating the number is not set up to receive messages. The company’s website www.omegaplanning.com is currently offline.
The district attorney’s office is asking if anyone invested money with Pagartanis, or has any information about the defendant, to call 631-853-5602.
A Coram man allegedly stole purses from women walking in shopping center parking lots on three separate occasions in February, according to Suffolk County police.
An investigation by 6th Squad detectives into three incidents during which a man in a vehicle would drive up to a female walking and steal her purse, led to the arrest of Andrew Sunyar. Sunyar was charged with three counts of fourth-degree grand larceny for his alleged actions surrounding the following incidents:
A purse was stolen from a female walking in the Stop & Shop parking lot, located at 385 Route 25A, Miller Place, Feb. 25 at 5:51 p.m.
A purse was stolen from a female walking in the Kohl’s parking lot, located at 5000 Route 347, Setauket, Feb. 24 at 11:36 a.m.
A purse was stolen from a female walking in the Walmart parking lot, located at 750 Route 25, Middle Island, Feb. 23 at 1:19 p.m.
Sunyar, 36, was also charged with a warrant for seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. He was held overnight at the 6th Precinct and arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip March 7, police said.
Attorney information for Sunyar was not immediately available.
Suffolk County Police arrested a Commack man Sept. 28 for multiple charges relating to a scam during which he took money from victims with the false promise of delivering vehicles.
Between December 2016 and September 2017, Emmanuel Amaral advertised cars for sale on Craigslist. Numerous victims paid him anywhere between $3,000 and $24,000 for a vehicle and waited several months for delivery, which never occurred. In one case, Amaral scammed a victim he met while in line at a bagel shop, and in another instance, defrauded a victim he met at an elementary school event. Amaral defrauded victims out of a total of approximately $73,000.
After an investigation by detectives from the Suffolk County Police, Property/Auto Crime Unit, Amaral was arrested in front of his residence at approximately 2 p.m. today.
Amaral, 48, was charged with seven counts of third-degree grand larceny and first-degree scheming to defraud.
Detectives are asking anyone who feels they may have been victimized by Amaral, who also uses the aliases Manny Balboa and Manny Amaral, to contact the Suffolk County Police, Property/Auto Crime Unit at 631-853-7114.
Amaral is scheduled to be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip and the investigation is ongoing.
Thieves stole debit card and pin information from a Mount Sinai home
Kirby Cineas and Kareen Shepherd, both of Brooklyn, were arrested and charged with grand larceny after the pair removed mail containing a debit card and pin number from a Mount Sinai mailbox. Photos from SCPD
Suffolk County Police Identity Theft Section detectives and the United States Postal Inspection Service today arrested two Brooklyn men for stealing financial information from a Mount Sinai resident’s mailbox.
Inspectors from The U.S. Postal Inspection Service received information regarding an identity theft ring operating throughout the East Coast, targeting victims in the Mount Sinai area. Postal inspectors were able to identify potential targets and contacted the Suffolk County Police Identity Theft Unit. Officials conducted joint surveillance in four locations. As a result of this investigation, two men, Kirby Cineas and Kareem Shepherd, both of Brooklyn, were arrested when the pair removed mail containing a debit card and pin number from a victim’s mailbox, Jan. 23 at approximately 1:15 p.m.
Cineas, 31, and Shepherd, 28, were charged with fourth–degree grand larceny and petit larceny. Shepherd was also charged with five counts of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument for possessing multiple forged credit and debit cards.
Cineas and Shepherd are being held at the Sixth Precinct and are scheduled to be arraigned today at First District Court in Central Islip.
A Coram man was allegedly found driving drunk in a vehicle that had just recently struck an officer while fleeing police questioning at the scene of a grand larceny.
According to the Suffolk County Police Department, the incident began with 5th Precinct officers responding on Wednesday to a report of an attempted larceny at the 76 gas station on Route 112 in Medford. When the officers were leaving, a vehicle police have described as belonging to the suspect in the crime returned with three people riding in it, and the officers approached it and talked to the people inside.
Police said during the discussion, the 2014 Dodge Charger fled, hitting one of the officers as well as a police car. The officer who was struck fired three shots at the Dodge.
He was treated for non-life-threatening injuries at the hospital.
The driver went north on Route 112 as one of the other vehicle occupants fled the scene, police said. The Dodge was found shortly afterward on Flores Lane in Middle Island.
Sheldon Davis, a 43-year-old Coram resident, was driving the Dodge at the time it was found, police said. He was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated.
Attorney information for the suspect was not immediately available. He was scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday.
Police said the third occupant of the Dodge at the scene of the grand larceny in Medford was questioned and later treated at the hospital for cuts from the glass that broke when the Dodge was shot.
The other officer at the scene, who had not been struck by the Dodge, was evaluated at the hospital, police said.
An East Northport woman has been convicted of stealing $30,000 meant to fund a van with a wheelchair lift for a Huntington teen with cerebral palsy.
Maureen Myles, 62, was convicted on Friday of grand larceny, scheme to defraud and petit larceny following a seven-day trial in Central Islip, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Tom Spota’s office. DA detective-investigators arrested Myles in December 2013 for making off with the money, which donors raised at a benefit dinner in Northport.
The DA’s office said State Supreme Court Justice Fernando Camacho found Myles guilty of one count of third-degree grand larceny, two counts of fourth-degree grand larceny, scheme to defraud and petit larceny.
Myles was previously convicted of a felony — in 2004, a jury found her guilty of grand larceny and scheme to defraud, for buying $40,000 worth of Bermuda cruise tickets using credit card numbers she stole from her employer, according to the DA.
Spota said the office will recommend the maximum prison term of three and a half to seven years when Myles is sentenced on Sept. 2.
Myles’ attorney, Garden City-based Richard Benson, didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment on Monday.
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