(Brentwood, NY) Today, County Executive Bellone, Chief Burke and Suffolk County Stop DWI representatives honored twenty-three Police Officers for making the most DWI arrests in Suffolk County. The prestigious ceremony, held at the Suffolk County Police Academy, honored all the officers and awarded one officer with the Top Cop award after making 118 arrests this year. This year the Top Cop honor was bestowed upon Timothy Murphy of the Riverhead Police Department.

“It is extremely important to us that motorists who are driving while intoxicated are stopped,” said Steve Bellone, Suffolk County Executive. “DWI tragedies don’t just affect those involved, they impact the families of victims as well.”

County Executive Bellone, Chief Burke and Suffolk County Stop DWI representatives honored twenty-three Police Officers for making the most DWI arrests in Suffolk County. Photo Credit: Suffolk County.

Suffolk County police agencies made over 5692 arrests in 2013 and more than 15,000 DWI arrests in the past 3 years.

In 2013, 51 people were killed in Suffolk County by the reckless behavior of drunk drivers as compared to 47 the previous year. Although, DWI fatalities have declined by 56% since 1979, Suffolk County recognizes that many challenges remain and will continue to be vigilant.

(L to R): Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, Riverhead Police Officer Timothy Murphy and Chief David J. Hegermiller Photo Credit: Suffolk County.

“Suffolk County will not tolerate drunk driving on our roadways, stated County Executive Bellone “We remain committed to arresting anyone who chooses to drink and then get behind the wheel of a car, endangering the lives of others.”

• The following officers were honored today:
• Village of Amityville: Joseph Slack
• Village of East Hampton: Steven Niggles
• Village of Northport: Micheael Gigante
• Village of Quogue: John Galvin
• Village of Southampton: Sashley Jones
• Village of Westhampton: Steven McManus
• Town of East Hampton: Vincent Rantinella
• Town of Riverhead: Timothy Murphy
• Town of Shelter Island: Christopher Drake
• Town of Southampton: Carl Schottenhamel
• Town of Southold: Rory Flatley
• New York State: Michael P. Grosso
• Suffolk County Parks: Greg Sandbichler
• Suffolk County Sheriff: Brian Rasiak
• SCPD 1st Precinct: David Leath
• SCPD 2nd Precinct: Harry Jos
• SCPD 3rd Precinct: Chris Anskat
• SCPD 4th Precinct: Doug Nassisi
• SCPD 5th Precinct: Jamie Bustamante
• SCPD 6th Precinct: Anthony Legotti
• SCPD 7th Precinct: Brandon Neal
• SCPD Highway Patrol: William Murray
• SCPD SAFE-T Team: Roger Kleber

The Special Traffic Options Program for Driving While Intoxicated (STOP-DWI) is a comprehensive program specifically designed to reduce the incidence of alcohol-related traffic fatalities and injuries in New York State. The program is supported by the fines collected from individuals convicted of alcohol-related traffic infractions. STOP-DWI will continue to work toward the reduction of drinking and driving in Suffolk through its support of increased enforcement, swift and certain prosecution, sound and cost effective rehabilitation, tough probation, and public information and education campaigns.

(Long Island, NY) The Third Squad reports the details of an arrest for Vehicular Assault that occurred on Tuesday, April 22, 2014 at 10:10 AM in Westbury.

According to detectives, a 45 year old male victim was driving a 2009 work van southbound on Brush Hollow Road at the intersection of Hillcrest Drive when he collided with a 2010 Toyota Corolla driven by defendant Ethel Mae Edwards, 43, of 226 Garden Street, New Cassel. The victim was trapped inside the vehicle and was extricated with the assistance of Nassau County Police Department Emergency Service Unit and Westbury Fire Department. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he is listed in critical condition. Two substances believed to be heroin and crack cocaine were found inside the defendants’ vehicle. The defendant was placed under arrest at scene and was also transported to a local hospital where she was admitted for treatment of her injuries.

Nassau County Police Third Squad detectives report the details of an arrest for Vehicular Assault that occurred on Tuesday, April 22, 2014 at 10:10 AM in Westbury. Photo Credit: Chris Boyle.

Edwards is being charged with Vehicular Assault 2nd Degree, Assault 2nd Degree and Criminal Possession of a Control Substance 7th Degree. She will be arraigned as soon as practical.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

(Hauppauge, NY) Today, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone encouraged residents to participate in upcoming blood drives sponsored by Suffolk County and New York Blood Center. County Executive Bellone, donating blood himself, urged all residents to replenish the community blood supply as a result of cancelled blood drives from the harsh 2013/2014 winter.

“Each and every day there are thousands of patients who rely on transfusions of red blood cells to save their lives,” said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. “I want to thank all our employees here in Suffolk County who participate in our year-round blood drives and I encourage all residents who are capable of donating blood to come out and join us at upcoming blood drives.”

County Executive Steve Bellone donates blood at the County seat in Hauppauge at a Suffolk County/New York Blood Center blood drive. Photo Credit: Suffolk County.

The New York Blood Center reminded the public that there is no substitute for human blood, with about one in seven hospital admissions requiring a blood transfusion. Blood is especially important for people with leukemia, other forms of cancer, and trauma victims. With a limited shelf life, supplies must be continually replenished.

County officials provided residents with a list of upcoming Suffolk County blood drives:

• Wednesday, May 7 from 10:00am to 2:30pm at the DSS MacArthur Building, 3455 Veterans Memorial Highway, Ronkonkoma.
• Tuesday, May 27 from 7:45am to 4:15pm at 400 Carleton Avenue, Central Islip.

Please logon to the New York Blood Center website at: nybloodcenter.org to find additional locations to give blood.

For the latest Suffolk County news, including photos and videos, visit www.facebook.com/stevebellone.

(Long Island, NY) A former director of production for a Lindenhurst community theater group was convicted this afternoon of possessing child pornography, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said. In 2012, Detectives from the Computer Crimes Unit of the county police department, assisting the Probation Department, found images of child pornography on Vincent Sparagano’s computer. He was on probation for his prior conviction of endangering the welfare of a teenager active in the theatre company, “The Spotlight Players”. Vincent Sparagano, a former director of production for a Lindenhurst community theater group was convicted this afternoon of possessing child pornography, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said. Photo Credit: SCPD.

Sparagano, 44, of 530 South Ninth St., Lindenhurst, was arrested on the child porn charges on September 5, 2012. Jury deliberations after a three week trial began this morning.

The jury found the defendant Vincent Sparagano GUILTY of FOUR counts of Possessing a Sexual Performance By a Child (class “E” Felonies punishable up to one and one-third to four years’ incarceration for each count (which may run consecutive due to his possession of four separate images of child pornography).

The jury found the defendant NOT guilty as to the remaining four counts of Promoting a Sexual Performance by a Child.

Vincent Sparagano was certified as a sex offender and following the guilty verdict, bail was set at $50,000 dollars cash or $100,000 bond.

Sentencing for Sparagno is scheduled for May 29, 2014.

(Long Island, NY) A Suffolk County grand jury has indicted a school bus driver for selling heroin, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota has announced.

Anna Kovarick, 38, of Bayshore, was a bus driver for Acme Bus who drove students to and from private schools in the West Islip area, including St. John the Baptist High School. On April 10, detectives assigned to the DA’s Heroin Task Force arrested the woman.

A Suffolk County grand jury has indicted Anna Kovarick, 38, a school bus driver from Bayshore, for selling heroin, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota has announced. Photo Credit: SCPD.

“She would pick the students up and bring them to school and then park her bus at the depot and go out and sell heroin,” DA Spota explained. “In the afternoon, she’d go back to the school in the bus and then return the kids home, and after her afternoon route go out again and sell more heroin.”

The district attorney said there was no evidence Kovarick drove the bus while under the influence of the drug. She drove school buses for the company for over 15 years.

Judge Martin Efman will unseal Kovarick’s indictment tomorrow morning (4/23) in Riverhead.

The calendar call is at 9:30 am.

The defendant is incarcerated in the county jail without bail.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

(Long Island, NY) “960 pounds of food and other non-perishable items were collected during a recent food drive I hosted,” said Senator Kemp Hannon (R-Nassau). “The goods were collected on behalf of Island Harvest, Long Island’s largest food bank.”

Hannon’s food drive took place on Friday, April 11th at the Levittown Super Stop and Shop. Customers and residents donated cans and dry goods as they exited the store (or brought to the location). The non-perishable items were then delivered to Island Harvest, for distribution to Long Island’s needy.

One of two vehicles filled to the roof with food & other non-perishable goods from Senator Hannon’s Food Drive at the Levittown Stop and Shop Photo Credit: NYS Senate.

“I’d especially like to thank Super Stop and Shop for giving us space to collect the goods, and to the extremely generous patrons and residents who were so giving to those less fortunate,” said Hannon. “Their generosity speaks volumes.”

(Long Island, NY) Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Fourth Precinct Crime Section officers are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate two men who stole a bicycle from the Sports Authority store in Commack.

On April 7, 2014, two males entered Sports Authority, located at 124 Veterans Memorial Highway, removed a green mountain bike from a display area and left the store without paying for it. One of the men rode the bike out the door and fled. The other man held the door open for him and drove away in an older model white van with roof racks on top.

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Fourth Precinct Crime Section officers are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate two men who stole a bicycle from the Sports Authority store in Commack. Photo Credit: SCPD.

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers 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. All calls will be kept confidential.

(Long Island, NY) Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci (R,C,WF,I-Huntington Station) recently met with Janet Walerstein and other officials from Child Care Council of Suffolk County and toured their facility. Child Care Council of Suffolk County works with parents, providers and businesses so that every child can be in a quality child care program.

“To many, our children are the most precious part of our world,” said Lupinacci. “Fortunately, the staff at the Child Care Council of Suffolk County helps parents ensure their children receive the quality care they need and deserve. I want to thank Janet and all the staff at Child Care Council for allowing me to tour their facility and learn about what they do.”

Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci meets with Child Care Council of Suffolk County’s Executive Director, Janet Walerstein. Photo Credit: NYS Assembly.

Child Care Council of Suffolk County is a not-for-profit planning and coordinating agency dedicated to making child care work for all of Suffolk County’s diverse communities. Through advocacy, education and resource and referral the Council takes a leadership role in supporting children, families, providers, employers and the public to ensure that quality child care takes its place as an integral part of society. For more information on the organization, please visit www.childcaresuffolk.org/Home.aspx.

(New York, NY) New York State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced the guilty pleas of William Rapfogel, former executive director and chief executive officer of the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty (Met Council), and David Cohen, also a former executive director of the council. Rapfogel and Cohen both face prison time after pleading guilty to multiple felony charges for stealing, together with other co-conspirators, approximately $9 million from the taxpayer-funded nonprofit organization in a 20-year grand larceny and kickback scheme.

Cohen admitted illegally receiving approximately $650,000 in cash kickbacks and payments for personal expenses. Rapfogel admitted that between January 1993 and August 2013, while working with Cohen, Joseph Ross of the insurance company Century Coverage Corporation and others, he stole in excess of $1 million from Met Council.

“These defendants abused positions of trust to steal millions of dollars from a taxpayer-funded charitable organization — one that is dedicated to serving New York City’s poor,” Attorney General Schneiderman said. “Those who rip off taxpayers and charitable organizations will be prosecuted. While New York has the greatest nonprofit sector in the country, this case reminds us that we must vigilantly protect it. I want to thank Comptroller DiNapoli for his continued partnership in our mission to root out public corruption and ensure that taxpayer money is protected. I also thank the Met Council board of directors for bringing this activity to light and cooperating with our investigation.”

State Comptroller DiNapoli said, “This was a troubling and sad case of personal gain at the expense of important community services. I commend Attorney General Schneiderman and his staff for their diligence in prosecuting this matter and recovering millions of dollars in stolen funds. We will continue to work with the Attorney General through our Joint Task Force to root out public corruption.”

Rapfogel, 59, pleaded guilty today before the Honorable Larry Stephen in New York County Supreme Court to Grand Larceny in the First Degree (a class B felony), Money Laundering in the Second Degree (a class C felony), Criminal Tax Fraud in the Third Degree (a class D felony) and Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree (a class E felony).

In exchange for his guilty plea, Rapfogel will be sentenced to 3 1/3 to 10 years in prison and will pay $3 million in restitution. If he fails to pay the restitution by his sentencing date, July 16, he will be sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison.

Cohen, 70, pleaded guilty today before the Honorable Michael Obus in New York County Supreme Court to Grand Larceny in the First Degree, Grand Larceny in the Third Degree and Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree. In exchange for his guilty plea, Cohen will be sentenced up to 1 1/2 to 4 1/2 years in prison and agreed to pay $650,000 in restitution by his sentencing date, set for July 9.

According to the Attorney General’s felony complaints and admissions made by the defendants as part of their guilty pleas, from 1993 to 2013, Rapfogel served as head of Met Council, a New York State not-for-profit organization that provides the poor and elderly in the metropolitan New York City area with social, economic, housing, food and emergency financial assistance as well as anti-family violence programs. Met Council receives funding through New York State and New York City grants, legislative member items and contracts. Prior to Rapfogel, Cohen was Met Council’s executive director and, after Rapfogel took over in 1993, he served as a consultant to the nonprofit.

Rapfogel and Cohen admitted engaging in an elaborate kickback scheme to steal money from Met Council. The scheme began in 1992 when Cohen devised a scheme with Joseph Ross of Century Coverage Corporation in which the company would submit inflated invoices for insurance coverage to the nonprofit. Met Council paid the inflated premiums, and then Ross paid cash kickbacks to Cohen and Herb Friedman, Met Council’s chief financial officer. Ross previously pleaded guilty to Grand Larceny in the First Degree and other charges for his role in the conspiracy and is awaiting sentence.

About six months after Rapfogel took over as executive director in 1993, he joined the conspiracy and received kickbacks, either in envelopes of cash or through payments of personal expenses by Ross. Initially, Ross paid Rapfogel and Cohen each $20,000 to $30,000 per year, but the inflated amount on the insurance policies increased over time, with Rafogel ultimately receiving approximately $30,000 per month. Cohen admitted to receiving approximately $650,000 in cash kickbacks and payments for personal expenses.

Rapfogel obtained the largest share of the kickbacks. As part of his plea, he admitted that from approximately January 1993 to August 2013, while working with Cohen, Friedman, and Ross, he stole over $1 million from Met Council as part of the kickback scheme. In August 2013, investigators from the Attorney General’s Office recovered more than $400,000 in cash that was hidden in Rapfogel’s homes. As restitution for his crimes, Rapfogel agreed to repay over $3 million to Met Council.

As part of the scheme, Rapfogel and Cohen also directed Ross to make political donations to various candidates for elected office from Century or from straw donors, using money obtained from the inflated payments for the insurance policies. These campaign contributions were made to politicians whom Rapfogel and Cohen believed could help Met Council.

These convictions are a result of an ongoing investigation by the Attorney General’s Office in conjunction with New York State Comptroller DiNapoli, as part of the Joint Task Force on Public Integrity.

The joint investigation by the Attorney General’s and Comptroller’s offices continues.

Attorney General Schneiderman and Comptroller DiNapoli would like to thank the New York City Department of Investigation, the New York State Department of Financial Services and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance for their assistance with the investigation.

Gerard Matheson is the lead investigator assigned to the case. Supervising Investigator Michael Ward of the Investigations Bureau is also working on the case. The Investigations Bureau is led by Chief Investigator Dominick Zarella. Also assisting in the investigation are Chief Auditor Edward Keegan, Auditor Matthew Krogan, Assistant Attorney General Milton Yu and Investigative Analyst II Paul Strocko of the Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau, Legal Support Analyst KerryAnn Rodriguez and Supervising Analyst Brian Selfon of the Public Integrity Bureau, and Policy Analyst Liam Arbetman of the Charities Bureau.

This case is being prosecuted by Gary T. Fishman, Chief of the Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau, with Assistant Attorney General Jihee Suh of the Public Integrity Bureau. The Attorney General’s Criminal Justice Division is led by Executive Deputy Attorney General Kelly Donovan.

(Long Island, NY) The Fourth Squad reports the details of an arrest for Assault that occurred on Tuesday, April 23, 2014 at 7:15 PM in Valley Stream.

According to detectives, 911 received a call for a domestic incident at a Fairmount Street residence. Fourth Precinct officers arrived at the scene; entered the home and were met by defendant Jeffrey Chatelain, 35, of 12 Fairmount Street, who was holding a kitchen knife in each hand and threatening to stab the officers. When officers tried to place the defendant under arrest, Chatelain began flailing his arms, spitting and refusing to be handcuffed. An officer suffered a broken hand while two others were exposed to saliva and blood. After a struggle the defendant was placed under arrest. Subsequent to arrest, officers recovered in plain view a clear plastic bag containing a white powdery substance believed to cocaine and several Xanax pills. The officers were transported to a local hospital and treated for their injuries.

The Fourth Squad reports the details of an arrest for Police Officer Assault that occurred on Tuesday, April 23, 2014 at 7:15 PM in Valley Stream. Photo Credit: Chris Boyle.

Jeffrey Chatelain is being charged with Assault 2nd Degree, 3 counts of Menacing a Police Officer, 2 counts of Criminal Possession of a Control Substance 3rd Degree, Menacing 3rd Degree and Resisting Arrest. He will be arraigned on April 23, 2014 at First District Court, Hempstead.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.