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Serial LI Bank Robber With ‘No Funny Business’ Demand Note Headed Back To Prison: Authorities
A serial Long Island bank robber who hit two more banks in December 2025 was sentenced Thursday, Oct. 1 to more prison time, authorities said.
Brian Blackford, 52, of Kings Park, got five and a half to 11 years in prison after admitting to the heists, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office said. The sentence was consistent with his plea deal in August.
Blackford’s name, age, hometown, and general appearance match a man who was charged in seven bank robberies and arrested in 2014, according to prior reports. Blackford spent seven years in state prison before his release in November 20…
LI Town Officials Admit Pocketing Fast-Track Bribes While Others Waited Months: Authorities
Two Long Island town officials pleaded guilty to bribery charges this week, authorities announced Thursday, Oct. 1.
Evelyn Calderon, 47, of Mastic, and Ryan Benitez, 38, of East Hampton, admitted taking bribes to fast-track building permits through the Town of East Hampton, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office said.
Building permits in East Hampton could take months for approval, and the office was understaffed and overworked, according to prosecutors and prior reporting from Newsday.
But if you knew the right people — namely Calderon and Benitez — you could get permits in days fo…
14-Year-Old LI Girl Stopped, Offered $300 By Creep In SUV: Police
A 14-year-old Long Island high school student was accosted by a bald man in an SUV, and now police are searching for the man.
The female student at Smithtown High School East was walking home Friday, Sept. 11 when she reached Lincoln Avenue and 6th Street in St. James, the Suffolk County Police Department said Thursday, Oct. 1.
At the intersection, a bald man between 40 and 50 years old driving a black Audi SUV parked in front of her, made an "inappropriate comment,” and offered her $300, police said.
Traffic cameras captured the man’s SUV on video, and he is wanted for child endangerment,…
Drunk LI Driver Who Killed Pedestrian After Stealing Car Cuts Plea Deal: Authorities
A young Long Island man who killed a pedestrian while driving drunk in a stolen car took a plea deal Wednesday, Sept. 30, authorities said.
Alexander Cerda, 23, of Bay Shore, pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter and several more charges in the death of Eric Perez in March 2025, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office said.
In exchange, Cerda is expected to get between six and 18 years in prison at his sentencing hearing on Jan. 8, 2027, according to the DA’s office.
“Every decision this defendant made on March 8, 2025, was worse than the next,” District Attorney Ray Tierney s…
Drunk Driver Slams Utility Pole Near Long Island Airport, Gets Cuffed: Police
A Long Island drunk driver slammed into a utility pole near East Hampton Airport, leading to his arrest, police said.
Fredy Tezen Paredes, 38, of Flanders, was traveling northbound on Daniels Hole Road near Hedges Lane in Wainscott around 10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, the East Hampton Town Police Department said.
Tezen Paredes’s crash into a utility pole sparked a police response, and officers smelled alcohol on his breath and noticed his eyes were bloodshot and glassy, authorities said.
When cops put Tezen Paredes through field sobriety tests, he “performed poorly” on the “horizontal gaze” an…
LI Man Pulls $3M-Winning Lottery Ticket Against 1-In-5 Million Odds
A Long Island man won a $3 million prize on a lottery scratch-off ticket, officials announced.
Cesar Martinez Alas, of Huntington Station, claimed the top prize in the $3 Million Max Multiplier game on Wednesday, Sept. 23, the New York Lottery announced.
Martinez Alas chose to receive a one-time lump sum payment of $1,328,043, after required withholdings, lottery officials said.
He bought his winning ticket at the 7-Eleven at 247 Broadway Greenlawn in Huntington, according to the New York Lottery.
Martinez Alas was the first to claim the top prize in the statewide scratch-off game, and tw…
13 Animals Rescued From ‘Deplorable’ Long Island Home, Three Arrested: Police
Thirteen animals living in “deplorable” conditions were rescued from a home on Long Island on Monday, Sept. 28, police said.
Brian Burden, 50, and Nicole Ramunni, 44, of Port Jefferson, and Timothy Burden, 55, of Stony Brook, were arrested following an investigation, the Suffolk County Police Department said.
Firefighters initially responded to reports of a roof fire on Willis Avenue in Port Jefferson around 9:45 a.m. Monday, authorities said.
But when they arrived, they also found “several different species of animals without food or water in the residence, and living in deplorable condit…
Two Teens Nabbed Mid-Tire Theft In Hicksville, Hit With Seven Charges Each: Cops
Two teens trying to steal tires off a car on Long Island were caught red-handed early Tuesday, Sept. 29, police said.
Starling Flores, 19, of Freeport, and Christopher Vinson, 18, of Lindenhurst, were nabbed following a theft report around 2:45 a.m. Tuesday, the Nassau County Police Department said.
Cops responded to the call on Mack Avenue in Hicksville and saw a 2020 Honda resting on a carjack and two men trying to remove the tires, authorities said.
Flores took off on foot, but officers quickly tracked him down and arrested him, police said. Other canvassing officers found Vinson and ca…
Drunk LI Mom Plows Car Into Tennis Court Moments After Dropping Off Daughter: Cops
A Long Island mom drunkenly crashed into a tennis court just moments after dropping off her 10-year-old daughter, police said.
Kimberly Shortell, 41, of Ronkonkoma, took her daughter to Ronkonkoma Beach at 299 Rosevale Avenue around 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 29, the Suffolk County Police Department said.
But after dropping her daughter off, Shortell drove into a parked car, went through a chain link fence, then continued onto a tennis court and into the fence on the other side of the court, cops said.
No one was on the court at the time, authorities said. Shortell was taken to Stony Brook Univ…
LI Man Shot And Killed In Park, Leaving Loved Ones Searching For Answers: ‘Just Why?’
A Long Island man was shot dead in a park Tuesday night, Sept. 29, police said.
Lonnie Booker, 43, of North Bellport, was found suffering from a gunshot wound in Robert Rowley Park just before 7:30 p.m., the Suffolk County Police Department said.
First responders rushed Booker to NYU Langone Hospital – Suffolk in Patchogue, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
No arrests were announced in the deadly shooting, and no suspects have been publicly identified. Police asked anyone with information about the shooting to call Homicide Squad detectives at 631-852-6392 or Crime Stoppers at 1-8…
LI Man, Attorney Wife Among 4 Killed In Greece Blast
A Bronx-raised attorney and her husband, a Long Island native, were among four American tourists killed in an explosion near the Acropolis in Athens, Greece.
Florida Hoxha grew up in the Bronx and was a senior attorney at the New York Legal Assistance Group, according to ABC News. Her husband, Ian Alexander Kirkpatrick, was from Huntington and attended Huntington High School from 2003 to 2007, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Hoxha and Kirkpatrick were killed alongside Hoxha’s brother, Florin Hoxha, and his wife, Erisa Cani, on Friday, Sept. 25, when an early-morning explosion destroyed a…
LI Cops Find Stolen Car After ‘Suspicious’ Door-Knocking Report: Police
A Long Island man’s “suspicious” door-knocking landed him in handcuffs after cops discovered outstanding warrants and a stolen vehicle, police said.
Joseph Brogan, 36, of Bethpage, was booked Monday, Sept. 28 following a report in East Quogue, the Southampton Town Police Department said.
A 911 caller reported a suspicious person knocking on doors on Landing Lane in the town, leading cops to respond and locate Brogan, authorities said.
As officers investigated, they learned Brogan had warrants at Southampton Town Justice Court and “multiple other jurisdictions,” police said.
Additionally,…
Dad, Mom, And Daughter Killed In NY House Fire, 13-Year-Son Survives
A house fire in New York killed a father, mother, and their 11-year-old daughter, while their 13-year-old son barely survived, according to authorities.
Dominick Rizzo Jr., 37; Alicia Ruefle, 39; and Abigail Rizzo, 11, all died from their injuries in the blaze, the city of Troy announced.
Dominick Rizzo III, 13, jumped from a second-story window to survive, according to an online fundraiser launched for the family.
“While he survived, he has also endured an unimaginable loss,” GoFundMe organizer Missy Remington wrote in the campaign. “We are asking our family, friends, neighbors, and commu…
Nassau DWI Driver Who Permanently Injured Teenager Gets Prison Time: Authorities
A drunk Long Island driver who permanently impaired a teenager in a wreck was sentenced Tuesday, Sept. 29 to prison time, authorities said.
Kelyse Land, 26, of Valley Stream, got two to six years behind bars for the crash, the Nassau County District Attorney’s office said.
Land was traveling on Hempstead Avenue around 11:45 p.m. July 25, 2025, when she crossed over the double yellow line and slammed head-on into a BMW stopped at a red light, authorities said.
Two teenagers inside the BMW were seriously injured, according to investigators. The driver suffered multiple hand and wrist fractur…
Dentist’s Patients Scrambled As $300K Hicksville Medicaid Fraudster Jetted Across Europe: AG
A Long Island man working as a dentist in Queens stole more than $300,000 from taxpayers through Medicaid fraud, authorities said.
Suleman Nasimi, 46, of Hicksville, was arraigned Monday, Sept. 28 on 40 charges for the four-year fraud operation, the New York Attorney General’s office said.
Nasimi operated a dental practice called Tooth Fresh Meadows and pulled the fraud between January 2020 and August 2024, investigators said.
The alleged scheme was pretty straightforward: Nasimi billed Medicaid for dental procedures he never performed, then pocketed the cash and left patients in the cold,…
NY Father Of Five’s Shock Killing Leads To Outpouring Of Support For His Kids
After a New York father of five was found dead in his home last week, the community has launched a fundraiser to support his children.
James M. Clark, 43, was killed by his wife, Christine S. Clark, at their home in Hartford on Wednesday, Sept. 23, according to New York State Police.
“His life was brutally ended at the hands of his wife after years of domestic violence,” organizer Alicia Randazzo, Clark’s sister, wrote in a GoFundMe.
Clark worked at NAPA Saratoga Auto Supply in Saratoga Springs and “will be remembered for his kindness, strength, and the love he brought into the lives of ot…
Nearly 13,000 Lead-Contaminated Water Lines Need Replacement Across Nassau County: Report
More than 12,000 water service lines need to be replaced due to lead contamination across Nassau County, according to a report released Tuesday, Sept. 29.
The 12,904 lead water pipes found in Nassau County were some of the more than 245,000 lead-contaminated service lines that have been identified across New York State, the Rockefeller Institute of Government said in its report.
Meanwhile, Suffolk County only has 16 lead service lines, according to the report. While some 800,000 service lines out of 3.8 million across the state have not yet been analyzed, fewer than 2,000 of those missing l…
