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James O’Brien

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Defendants Charged with Stealing Catalytic Converters in Rocky Point, Holbrook, and Bellport

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced on Jan. 10 the indictments of Medford residents James O’Brien, Daniel Labbe and Jason Labbe for allegedly stealing catalytic converters from trucks and vans in Rocky Point, Holbrook, and Bellport. O’Brien was also indicted on separate charges of alleged Robbery in the First Degree and Burglary in the Second Degree.

“Catalytic converter thefts have caused significant financial loss and tremendous inconvenience to the residents of Suffolk County,” said District Attorney Tierney. “These arrests are a significant step in my commitment to reduce the scourge of catalytic converter thefts by holding criminals responsible for their actions. The separate allegations that O’Brien brazenly committed crimes of robbery and burglary indicate a disturbing pattern of criminal behavior, which not be tolerated.”

James O’Brien, 45, was arraigned on January 5, 2023 before Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable John B. Collins on an indictment, including charges of Robbery in the First Degree for allegedly robbing a Yaphank gas station on November 2, 2022, while displaying what appeared to be a firearm, and Burglary in the Second Degree for allegedly burglarizing a residence in Yaphank on December 15, 2022. 2 Justice Collins set bail on that indictment in the amount of $50,000 cash, $500,000 bond, or $500,000 partially secured bond. O’Brien was also indicted on the following charges after allegedly stealing a catalytic converter from a work van in Bellport on September 5, 2022:

One count of Criminal Mischief in the Second Degree;

One count of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree;

One count of Auto Stripping in the Third Degree;

and One count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Seventh Degree.

O’Brien was arraigned on that indictment before Justice Collins as well. Justice Collins ordered his bail set at $5,000 cash, $50,000 bond, or $50,000 partially secured bond on those charges. O’Brien is represented by Eric Besso, Esq. His next court date is February 15, 2023.

Previously, Daniel Labbe, 43, was indicted on the following charges after allegedly stealing two catalytic converters from a work truck in Rocky Point on October 22, 2022:

One count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree;

One count of Auto Stripping in the Second Degree;

One count of Criminal Mischief in the Second Degree;

One count of Possession of Burglar Tools;

and One count of Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fifth Degree.

Daniel Labbe was arraigned on the indictment on November 10, 2022, before Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable Timothy P. Mazzei, who remanded him without bail. Daniel Labbe had previously pleaded guilty to Auto Stripping in the Second Degree and Petit Larceny in a separate case and is awaiting sentence. He is represented on the new indictment by Scott Zerner, Esq. His next court date is January 13, 2023.

Additionally, Jason Labbe, 45, was indicted on the following charges after allegedly stealing a catalytic converter from a van outside a doctor’s office in Holbrook on August 24, 2021:

One count of Criminal Mischief in the Third Degree;

Two counts of Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fourth Degree;

One count of Petit Larceny;

and One count of Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fifth Degree.

Jason Labbe was arraigned on the indictment on December 8, 2022, after being returned on a warrant. County Court Judge and Acting Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable Steven A. Pilewski rejected the prosecutor’s request for bail and, rather, released Jason Labbe to the Supervised Release Program and required that he wear a GPS tracker while the case is pending. Jason Labbe has additional pending cases, including two which involve the alleged theft of catalytic converters. He is represented on this indictment by Danielle Papa, Esq. His next court date is January 17, 2023.

Catalytic converters are a part of a vehicle’s exhaust device and use precious metals in their center to reduce pollutants from a vehicle’s engine. These precious metals, which include palladium, platinum, and rhodium can be more valuable than gold and make catalytic converters a target for theft. They can be stolen from underneath a vehicle in only a few minutes using a reciprocating saw and typically have no unique identification features, which make them difficult to trace to a lawful owner.

These cases are being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Blythe C. Miller of the Financial Crimes Bureau, and James O’Rourke of the Major Crime Bureau.

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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Suffolk County Police arrested a man near his home in Medford on Dec. 17 for alleged multiple felonies committed during October and December 2022.

Fifth Squad detectives received information through the Crime Stoppers program pertaining to a gas station robbery that occurred in Yaphank on November 2. Following an investigation conducted by Fifth Squad detectives, Fifth Precinct Crime Section officers, Sixth Squad detectives and Sixth Precinct Crime Section officers, the suspect, James O’Brien, was located and arrested outside his residence on Lincoln Road at approximately 9:30 p.m.

It was determined that O’Brien was also allegedly responsible for the following:

 The theft of two catalytic converters on Lakeland Avenue in Ronkonkoma on October 21.

 Fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle in Coram on October 24.

 The burglary of a residence on Lincoln Road in Medford on December 15.

O’Brien, 45, was charged with Robbery 1st Degree, Grand Larceny 3rd Degree, Fleeing an Officer in a Motor Vehicle 3rd Degree, and Burglary 2nd Degree.

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

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Angie Tempio with her boyfriend James O'Brien

By Daniel Dunaief

New York may have started Phase One of its reopening and other states may have reopened shops and businesses, but life won’t change much for Angie Tempio.

A native of Commack who had been working at the front desk at Funt Orthodontics in Setauket since 2017, Tempio received a heart transplant last summer and plans to do everything she can to protect herself amid threats from the pandemic.

Tempio, who was preparing to rebuild her life outside of an apartment she shares in Yaphank with her boyfriend James O’Brien, plans to remain as isolated as possible, lowering the chance of contracting COVID-19.

Angie Tempio with her boyfriend James O’Brien

 

“The world is opening back up,” Tempio said. “For me, it’s not. Nothing will change for a few months. I’m used to being left behind.”

Tempio, however, doesn’t feel sorry for herself or rue her situation. She now focuses on new possibilities. 

Diagnosed with restrictive cardiomyopathy when she was 11, she slowly went into heart failure. She struggled for a few years before her transplant, but the last year was the toughest. She said her pacemaker kept her alive.

Tempio, who recently turned 26, had made her peace with death, particularly when she struggled to walk two steps at a time and when her failing heart beat only 30 times per minute. “I was lucky,” she said. Two months after she went on the transplant list, she “got the call, which is a miracle in itself.”

While Tempio feels overwhelmingly blessed that she can consider having children, she said she is also sensitive to the over 1,870 residents who died from COVID-19 in Suffolk County.

Tempio had a rare heart condition that caused her to be a small statistic. Even with the overall mortality rate for COVID-19 below one percent, she empathizes with people and their family who are on the other side of those small numbers.

“Experiencing being a small statistic has definitely made me look at things differently,” she said. “In my head, anyone can [be such a statistic] and most people aren’t realizing that and that’s what’s making me overly cautious.”

Tempio said she was a gymnast and was seemingly healthy before she developed the rare heart disease.

“Although I haven’t experienced the virus itself, I’ve been through the same obstacles,” she explained in an email.

Even when the coronavirus first started infecting people on Long Island, Tempio wore masks to the classes she is taking at Suffolk County Community College, where she hopes to study to become a transplant coordinator. She said she felt judgment from people who thought she was being overly concerned about the virus.

“Most people didn’t realize” how much more vulnerable she was to the virus than the typical person walking around Long Island, she said. 

While she’s waiting for the moment when she can emerge from a home cocoon, Tempio has been connecting with a network of friends and a close-knit heart transplant support group. She and 13 others are a part of a group that shares a profound and unique experience that brings them together and helps them connect with, and support.

“They have been my outlet during one of the hardest times in my life and I am so grateful to have them,” she said.

Tempio said she feels a responsibility to live her best and healthiest life. She believes she is “now living for my donor,” she said, and plans to “take the best care of this heart that I can.”

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