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Tyler Johnson is accused of attacking Southampton Village police vehicles with a baseball bat. COURTESY SVPD
A Bellport man faces felony charges after Southampton Village Police say he used a baseball bat to smash the windshields of police cars in teh headquarters lot. KITTY MERRILL
A Bellport man was arrested on Thursday afternoon, November 29, after he used a baseball bat to smash out the windshields of two police vehicles parked in the Southampton Village Police Department parking lot, police said.
Detective Sergeant Herman Lamison said Tyler J. Johnson, 22, told arresting officers he was “looking to hurt the police or anybody who got in his way.” He did about $6,600 damage to the two vehicles before officers intervened and took him into custody without further incident, police said.
Mr. Johnson is charged with two felony counts of criminal mischief, plus unlawful possession of marijuana, a violation.
Det. Sgt. Lamison said that at approximately 1:27 p.m., a white 2016 Mercedes Benz CLS entered the parking lot of the police headquarters on Windmill Lane, proceeding around to the rear of the building, where department vehicles are parked. He said Mr. Johnson got out of the vehicle with a metal baseball bat and began smashing the windshields and damaging the vehicle bodies.
Mr. Johnson expressed having issues with his girlfriend, who lives in Southampton Village, Det. Sgt. Lamison said, when asked about a possible motive for the vandalism. Mr. Johnson had no previous arrest record the detective sergeant said, musing he was “just not a fan of law enforcement.”
Several hours after he was arrested, Mr. Johnson was taken to the Stony Brook Comprehensive Emergency Psychiatric Program, police said.
