Police / Arrest Reports

Police Reports For Week Of July 2

WESTHAMPTON BEACH — Beverly Deperstein, 46, of the Bronx was arrested by Westhampton Beach Village Police at 2 p.m. on June 25 on Main Street and charged with fourth degree criminal possession of stolen property, a felony, and misdemeanor false personation, after she was fond sleeping in an SUV that was reported stolen by its owner that morning. According to police, a village resident called police that morning, reporting that he’d parked his 2014 Ford Edge in the lot at 180 Main Street the previous afternoon, but when he went to retrieve it at 7:30 the next morning it was gone. Police found Ms. Deperstein asleep in the SUV just several doors down Main Street from the lot. The keys had been left in the car. Ms. Deperstein initially gave police the wrong name, they said.

WESTHAMPTON BEACH — Eduardo Garcia, 24, of Riverhead was arrested by Village Police just after 2:30 a.m. on June 29 at a Montauk Highway gas station and charged with leaving the scene of an accident with property damage and disorderly conduct. According to police, a patrol officer found a damaged street lamp and hanging flower baskets in the middle of the road near the traffic circle. Black tire marks led to the gas station, where the officer found a 2009 Chevy Silverado pickup truck with a flat tire and extensive driver’s side damage. As police attempted to impound the car, they said Mr. Garcia stood in front of the tow truck, then chased it, running alongside the truck on Montauk Highway until he was caught and handcuffed.

SAG HARBOR — Village Police were called to Mashashimuet Park on June 22 around 11:15 a.m. to reports of people not socially distancing themselves. Police said they did make an announcement to the group at the park that the village was looking for compliance to state mandates about social distancing and wearing face coverings when unable to maintain a 6-foot distance.

SAG HARBOR — A Rose Street resident contacted Village Police on June 23 to report sometime between June 19 and June 22 a person broke a window at his residence and entered the home. The homeowner said they found cigar ashes and an empty bag of potato chips on the second floor. He said he wanted to file a report with police for documentation and believes it may have been a contractor who was let go from a job.

SAG HARBOR — One homeowner and one business owner reported their “Black Lives Matter” signs were damaged or stolen this week. On June 23, a Main Street resident reported to police that one “Black Lives Matter” sign she had in front of her home was stolen and a replacement sign was later damaged by unknown persons. A Main Street business owner contacted police on June 24 to report her sign was removed from the front of her store sometime between 11:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

SAG HARBOR — Harbormaster Bob Bori came to the rescue of three individuals trapped on the Breakwater on June 24 around 6:11 p.m. after their 9-foot inflatable fishing boat began leaking. The Harbormaster collected one adult and two children and brought them and their boat to Marine Park safely.

SAG HARBOR — A Redwood Road homeowner and a Yale Road homeowner got into a dispute this week over a pathway that borders both properties over who owns the spit of land — both claiming to have deeds that show it is in their ownership. On June 25, Building Inspector Thomas Preiato informed the two homeowners that this was a civil dispute that would have to be dealt with in court.

SAG HARBOR — On June 26 at 5:42 a.m., a Main Street resident called police after a landscaping company began using a leaf blower nearby. Police talked to the landscaper who agreed to stop working without incident.

SAG HARBOR — Three lawn sprinklers, valued at $150, were taken from a Main Street property between May 28 and June 26, according to a report filed with police this week.

SOUTHAMPTON VILLAGE — Twice last week Village Police were contacted by residents who reported that someone stole their identities and filed for unemployment benefits in their names. Both times, the victims learned of the identity thefts when their employers contacted them.

SOUTHAMPTON VILLAGE — Village Police were called at around 1 a.m. on June 29 by staff at the McDonald’s restaurant on North Sea Road, who complained that a group of people in one vehicle became irate when they discovered the fast food outlet was closed, and turned over a garbage can, spilling its contents.

SOUTHAMPTON VILLAGE — A resident of South Main Street contacted Village Police on June 29, reporting that a drone flew over her house and was watching her children play. At one point, the drone flew down and hovered in front of her face. She wanted the incident documented.

RIVERSIDE — Southampton Town Police arrested Christopher Jennings, 52, of Riverside, on June 22 just before noon on Ludlam Avenue, and charged him with felony criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree and misdemeanor second degree menacing. Mr. Jennings was accused of telling another man that he was going to kill him, then telling police he wanted to cut the man’s heart out. Police were unable to locate a knife.

HAMPTON BAYS — A resident of Kitchawan Lane contacted Southampton Town Police on June 25, reporting that someone cut up his outdoor string lights sometime during the previous night.

BRIDGEHAMPTON — Southampton Town Police received a call on June 27 from a Hildreth Lane resident who reported his vehicle had been stolen from his driveway. An investigation ensued, and police learned the erstwhile victim forgot he had parked his car at a local gourmet food market the prior night and walked home.

WATER MILL — A David Whites Lane resident told Southampton Town Police on June 27 that she stored her engagement ring in a clear container in a drawer in a walk-in closet, and hasn’t been wearing it during the COVID-19 outbreak. She last saw the ring earlier in June and it seems to have been stolen.

HAMPTON BAYS — Four Lynn Avenue residents reported damaged mailboxes on June 27. One heard a loud bang at around 1 a.m. on June 27 and later discovered his mailbox was dented and the wooden pole it was on cracked, resulting in $100 in repair costs. On Canoe Place Road, another resident reported a damaged mailbox, vandalized during the same timeframe. He also complained plants were taken out of the ground. On Rowland Court, another mailbox fell prey to the mischief makers, as did one on Shinnecock Road. Southampton Town Police are investigating.

NOYAC — A Bay View Drive property owner told Southampton Town Police that she wired $1,500 to a man who’d supposedly overpaid rent. Later, she tried to contact the supposed tenant and could not reach him. She agreed on a price of $4,263.29 to rent her house, but received a check for $7,750.70. After wiring the balance to the man, she learned from her bank that the check was no good, she told Southampton Town Police.

HAMPTON BAYS — Diana Karas, 39, of New York, was arrested by Southampton Town Police and charged with fourth degree criminal mischief, a misdemeanor on June 26. Police say Ms. Karas was in a dispute with the manager of a West Montauk Highway store about returning merchandise. Ms. Karas became angry and pushed on a plastic shield, breaking it, according to the police report.

FLANDERS — Sean McDermott, 31, of Flanders, was arrested by Southampton Town Police and charged with disorderly conduct on June 27 just after 1 a.m. Police say he was standing in the southbound lane of Flanders Road throwing objects on to the road causing a northbound vehicle to swerve off the road to avoid them. The objects were a milk crate, a traffic cone, and a wooden post.

WESTHAMPTON — Carlton Schaffer, 39, of Shirley was arrested by Southampton Town Police and charged with felony grand larceny in the fourth degree on June 28. Southampton Town Police say he unlawfully removed his estranged wife’s jewelry from her bedroom. They did not describe the jewelry, nor offer any additional details of the incident.

SPRINGS — A wallet was stolen from a vehicle parked in a driveway on Harbor View Avenue in East Hampton on June 20, according to a report filed with East Hampton Town Police on June 22. On June 22, around 5:40 p.m., the victim was contacted via Facebook Messenger by someone who had located the victim’s license and other important cards on the side of Three Mile Harbor Road. The victim responded to the residence to collect the items and filed a report. Two fraudulent charges were made from Uber on one of the victim’s bank cards.

EAST HAMPTON VILLAGE — Village Police responded to a Railroad Avenue fitness center on June 22 around 11 a.m. to reports of a fitness class being held, which is not allowed under state guidelines for reopening. Police advised the instructor fitness classes are not permitted until phase four under state guidelines. The instructor agreed to end the class.

AMAGANSETT — A black wallet was stolen out of the center console of an unlocked 1995 Ford F250 on June 22 between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. while it was parked in the driveway of a residence on Town Lane in Amagansett. The victim told Town Police he was picked up at 8 a.m. for a landscaping job and upon returning to the vehicle could not locate his wallet and wanted to file the report to replace his license and protect against any fraudulent activity.

MONTAUK — A Manhattan resident called Town Police on June 22 around 7:43 p.m. to report that someone threw firecrackers out of their Honda Civic and onto the sidewalk near where the 29-year-old and his fiancée were waiting to order pizza from a takeout window, scaring his dog and hitting the leg of his fiancée, who was uninjured. The man was able to identify the car in question, but declined to press charges.

MONTAUK —On June 23 at 11:02 p.m., a fight broke out on the Eddie Ecker Pier on Navy Road after two men got into a confrontation over a fishing lure. According to Town Police, a Montauk resident and his son were fishing on the pier when a Wainscott man picked up one of their new fishing lures and began to walk away with it. He returned the lure, only to pick it up and put it in his pocket again, prompting the father to ask him why he was stealing his lure. The Wainscott man tried to start a fight, yelling at the individuals and a fight ensued. Both men denied medical assistance and declined to press charges.

MONTAUK — The president of the Montauk Beach Property Owners Association reported signs taken from beach markers on Old Montauk Highway on two separate occasions between June 10 and June 24. Police informed Marine Patrol of the incidents with the man providing images of the stolen signs.

NORTHWEST — A firework was ignited and placed in the mailbox of a property on State Route 114 in East Hampton, according to a Town Police report filed on June 24 around 10 a.m. The damage occurred sometime overnight between June 23 and June 24. Police canvassed the surrounding area and did not find any other damaged mailboxes.

EAST HAMPTON VILLAGE — On June 24, at 5:15 p.m., Village Police responded to reports of a gas-powered leaf blower being used on East Hollow Road — a violation of village code. Police spoke to a landscaper who said his company had not informed him of the new code. Police issued the Southampton resident a warning.

MONTAUK — Town Police were called to a hotel on South Emerson Avenue in Montauk to a report of three individuals fighting with a security guard over having to wear a face covering around 5:20 p.m. on June 26. According to police, three men were approached by a security guard asking them to put on face coverings, when they began to yell at him and refused to follow directions. The security guard said one of the men appeared intoxicated and swung at him in an attempt to hit him before the security guard pushed the man away. A bartender urged the man to go into the restaurant for his safety and the three men left, walking toward the beach, according to witnesses. No charges were filed.

SPRINGS — A Gerard Drive resident called police on June 28 to report someone trespassing on her property. At 11:40 a.m., the resident said she found a Toyota Tacoma pick-up truck parked above the high tide mark on Gerard Drive, which was on her property. She told police she approached the driver of the vehicle, an East Hampton resident, who became confrontational before driving away. The woman said she did not want to press charges but wanted the incident documented.