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Daniel Apolinario, age 24, of Bay Shore, entered the Riverhead Correctional Facility parking lot through the employee entrance at about 10:45 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 21, and he tried to exit jail grounds the wrong way through the visiting entrance, the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office said.
The deputy sheriff who was working in the security booth at the entrance stopped the vehicle and spoke with Apolinario, who seemed to be intoxicated, authorities said.
Apolinario was given a field sobriety test and was found to be under the influence, the Sheriff's Office reported.
He was arrested for driving while intoxicated.
Deputies also recovered a loaded handgun without a serial number, often referred to as a "ghost gun," under the driver's seat of the vehicle, the Sheriff's Office said.
Apolinario reportedly would not give a statement about the gun and refused to take a breath test.
The vehicle was impounded, deputies said.
The Sheriff's Office said Apolinario was charged with the following:
- Criminal possession of a firearm
- Second- and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon
- Driving while intoxicated
- First- and second-degree promoting prison contraband
- Multiple traffic infractions
Due to a prior DWI conviction, Apolinario's DWI charge was upgraded to a felony, deputies said.
“Getting this untraceable 'ghost gun' off the street will undoubtedly save a life in the future,” Suffolk County Sheriff Dr. Errol D. Toulon, Jr. said in a statement. “The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office is dedicated to improving the safety and security of all of Suffolk’s residents, and an arrest like this goes a long way to achieving this goal. We may never know the unthinkable crimes that may have been prevented by getting this person and this gun off the street.”
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