Crime & Safety

Crimes Nearby: Arrests Made in Riverhead Armed Robbery

Also this week, police respond to a brawl outside of a Southampton restaurant and an East Hampton man is arrested after beating another man with his belt.

The following information was supplied by various police departments. A criminal charge is only an accusation and does not indicate guilt.


RIVERHEAD

• Three men were arrested in relation to an armed Halloween robbery of a Riverside gas station. In recent weeks, Southampton Town Police have collaborated efforts with Riverhead Police, Suffolk County Police, Southold Police, the East End Drug Task Force, and the Suffolk County Sheriff's Department after a series of similar robberies. Police announced on Wednesday that three arrests had been made in relation to the crimes.

On Oct. 20 at 9:30 p.m.,  two masked men armed with handguns robbed the Spirit Halloween Store on Route 58; on Nov. 7 at 6 p.m., three masked men robbed Barth's Pharmacy in Riverhead; and on Nov. 19, three masked gunmen robbed a Mattituck gas station.

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Larry M. Moore, 17, was arrested on Saturday; Erick C. Darden, 19, was arrested on Monday; and Arnell Nash, 21, was arrested on Tuesday. All three are from Riverhead, police said, and were arrested on charges of first-degree robbery, a felony.

MILLER PLACE-ROCKY POINT

A Mastic man was arrested Nov. 17 on multiple charges after stealing items from the Rocky Point Kohl’s on two separate occasions.
William Gonnelly was charged with two counts of third degree burglary- illegal entry with intent, a felony, and resisting arrest, a misdemeanor. According to police, Gonnelly was told not to return to Kohls after he was caught stealing two camcorders and a tablet. Gonnelly returned to the Kohl's Nov. 17 and allegedly stole two vacuums and two DVD players before being arrested.
Police said Gonnelly resisted while being arrested on the two burglary charge

WESTHAMPTON-HAMPTON BAYS

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William Sinclair, 25, of Speonk, was charged with a felony count of criminal mischief in the third degree after police said he was involved in a domestic dispute with his father at 11:38 p.m. According to the report, Sinclair broke a storm door window with a hammer as well as a main door window at a residence on East Road in Speonk.

SOUTHAMPTON

•  Southampton Village police nabbed a drunk driver early Saturday after he fled from East Hampton Town police at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour, according to authorities. East Hampton Town police said that just after midnight on Nov. 24, an officer saw Kyle B. Ballou, 23, of East Hampton, driving extremely erratically and recklessly while heading westbound on Montauk Highway in the vicinity of Cove Hollow Road in East Hampton. The arrest report states the driver was passing cars on the left unsafely, driving in and out of the oncoming traffic lane. After alerting surrounding police departments, Southampton Village police located him, though officers were led on another high speed chase. After stopping his vehicle, he attempted to flee on foot, according to police. He was charged with DWI by Southampton Village police at 1:59 a.m. East Hampton Town police charged him with reckless driving, fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle, and aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle.

• A fight broke out at Main Street restaurant 75 Main early Sunday, resulting in a number of injuries but no arrests just yet, according to Southampton Village police. The 911 call reporting a "large fight" in front of 75 Main came at 3:05 a.m., police said. The fighting had begun inside the restaurant, which was holding an 18-and-over event, and spilled out onto the street, according to police. Village police said that both Southampton Town and New York State police were called in to help disperse a crowd of more than 200 people, many who were involved in fighting. Though no serious injuries were reported, several people were taken to Southampton Hospital.

EAST HAMPTON

• Guillermo Pillco, 35, of East Hampton, was charged with second-degree assault, a felony, on Nov. 24 after he reportedly beat another man with his belt.
According to police reports, a Bridgehampton man was brought to Southampton Hospital on Nov. 18, being treated for a serious eye injury. Reports state that the man had been invited to a bingo party in East Hampton, though after showing up, the man said he was not allowed in and was assaulted by a man who had made an inappropriate comment about his friend’s girlfriend. The man reportedly pulled off his belt and hit the victim in the eye.
Police interviewed homeowners in reference to the incident, who initially said they were unaware of a fight, but on Nov. 24, Pillco was arrested on Cedar Street in East Hampton and transported to headquarters for processing. He was arraigned and released after posting $10,000 bail.

• A Southampton woman was hit with additional charges last week stemming from a head-on collision in East Hampton Village earlier this month.
Melanie S. Burkel, 39, is being held on $10,000 cash bail or $50,000 bond at the Suffolk County jail in Riverside, on a felony charge of reckless endangerment, which village police levied against her on Nov. 16, just as she was released from Stony Brook University Medical Center.
She was also charged with reckless driving and third-degree assault, both misdemeanors, in addition to the initial drunken driving charge, according to Village Police Chief Jerry Larsen.


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