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Long Island Garbage Truck Catches Fire, Items Dumped In Parking Lot
A garbage truck caught fire on Long Island, but quick thinking and a fast emergency response limited the damage.
A Hempstead town sanitation truck began smoking at 1132 Wantagh Avenue in Wantagh on Friday morning, Aug. 28, the Wantagh Fire Department said.
The fire was contained to garbage inside the truck, so the items were dumped into a parking lot, the department said. Several firetrucks then arrived, and emergency crews doused the blaze with little issue, officials said.
“All fire was knocked down quickly, while overhaul continued for a while as firefighters, assisted by a Town of Hemp…
Drunk Driver Hit With Felony Charge After Two-Car Wreck On Long Island: Police
A drunk Long Island driver was involved in a two-car wreck on Montauk Highway on Friday night, Aug. 28, police said.
Mateo Jimenez, 38, of Westhampton, was arrested following the crash near 190 Montauk Highway in Hampton Bays, the Southampton Town Police Department said. The address corresponds to a shopping plaza.
Cops responded around 8:50 p.m. Friday to the wreck and determined Jimenez, one of the drivers involved, was drunk at the time, cops said.
Jimenez was arrested and charged with felony DWI, police said. He was held overnight for arraignment Saturday morning, Aug. 29.
LI Man Broke Protection Order To Steal Victim’s Car, Cops Say
A Long Island man stole a car from someone with an order of protection against him, police said Monday, Aug. 31.
Amin Jamal Ross, 37, of Middle Island, was arrested around 2 a.m. Friday, Aug. 28 in Montauk in possession of the stolen vehicle, the East Hampton Police Department said.
Cops found Ross near 1999 Montauk Highway with the car, which had been stolen from someone he was barred from contacting, according to police reports. East Hampton authorities did not provide additional information about the theft.
Ross was charged with third-degree possession of stolen property and second-degr…
Pedestrian Killed In Pickup Truck Crash On Long Island: Police
A Long Island pedestrian was killed while crossing a street early Sunday, Aug. 30, police said.
Wayne Conforti Jr., 37, of Flanders, was walking in Flanders Road around 1:30 a.m. Sunday when a 2016 Toyota Tacoma struck him in the roadway, the Southampton Town Police Department said.
Cops responded to the scene and found Conforti lying in the road, near the intersection with Oak Avenue, suffering from serious physical injuries, authorities said. He was rushed to Peconic Bay Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Investigators determined the Tacoma driver was traveling westbound on Fl…
Corrections Sergeant, Wife, Kids Killed When Car Plummets Down Embankment (Update)
A correctional sergeant, his wife, and their two children were killed when their car plunged about 60 feet down a steep embankment on Saturday, Aug. 29, state police said.
Pennsylvania State Troopers were called around 10:16 a.m. to the area of 1365 Rock Mountain Drive in Gibson Township, Susquehanna County, where first responders found the sedan down the embankment.
Peter Thatcher, 45, and Sandra Thatcher, 45, both of Tunkhannock, police said, died in the crash along with their 11-year-old son, Noah, and 10-year-old daughter, Layla. Public records, their school, and their church later…
Man Holds 2 Long Island Teens At Gunpoint, Steals E-Bike: Police
Two 15-year-old boys were held at gunpoint and robbed of an e-bike on Long Island, police said.
The teens were riding near Bayview Avenue in Inwood at about 9:34 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 29, when a man approached them, displayed a handgun, and demanded the e-bike, Nassau County Police said.
Fearing for their lives, the boys handed it over, and the man rode away, according to detectives. Neither teen was injured.
Fourth Precinct officers later arrested Lavon Smith, 26, of Far Rockaway, following an investigation, police said. Officers also recovered a stolen firearm.
Smith is charged with first…
17 Animals Found Without Proper Care At Condemned NY Home: Sheriff
An animal complaint in New York led to misdemeanor charges against two people after authorities said 17 animals were not properly cared for at a condemned home.
The Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office was called to Angel Road in Corinth at 2:42 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 11, according to Sheriff Jeffrey R. Brown.
The investigation resulted in the arrests of Shannon M. Long, 31, of Hadley, and Michael L. Bovee, 47, of Corinth, on Saturday, Aug. 30.
Each was charged with 17 counts of overdriving, torturing, and injuring animals by failing to provide proper sustenance, a Class A misdemeanor, the sher…
Woman Killed Crossing Route 110 On Long Island, Police Say
A woman was struck and killed while crossing a busy Long Island roadway Saturday night, Aug. 29, police said.
The crash happened in East Farmingdale at approximately 8:30 p.m., when the woman was walking west across Route 110 at Conklin Street, according to the Suffolk County Police Department.
She was struck by a southbound 2011 Hyundai Sonata, police said.
The woman, whose name was being withheld pending notification of her family, was taken to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, where she was pronounced dead.
The Hyundai's driver, Xavier Thomas, 30, of Farmingd…
Long Island Business Owner, Dad Dies After DWI Driver Hits Parked Car: Police
A Long Island business owner and father has died after a suspected drunk driver crashed into the parked car he was sitting in, police said.
James Baldassarri, 44, of Holtsville, was inside a 2025 Toyota parked outside 26 Wilson Drive in Middle Island when a 2017 Ford Taurus struck it around 12:05 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 27, Suffolk County Police said.
Baldassarri suffered serious injuries and was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital. He died from those injuries, police announced Saturday, Aug. 29.
The Taurus driver, Noah Slusser, 21, of Medford, was charged with driving while intoxicate…
$10M Cocaine Bust In Long Island City Is Largest NYC Cache In 20 Years: Prosecutor
A New Jersey man has been charged after authorities seized more than 580 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $10 million in what prosecutors called their largest single cocaine cache in 20 years.
Nelson Salcedo, 35, of Englewood, was arrested on Wednesday, Aug. 26, outside a self-storage facility in Long Island City, Queens, following a two-week investigation into high-level cocaine trafficking in New York City and New Jersey, according to the New York City Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor.
The investigation was conducted by the DEA New Jersey Field Division, NYPD, New Jersey Sta…
Wrong-Way Hit-And-Run Driver Who Hospitalized Five On Long Island Takes Plea Deal: Authorities
A Long Island man who fled a car crash while high on weed — only to cause an even-worse wrong-way collision — has pleaded guilty, authorities said.
Miandad Khan, 38, of Dix Hills, copped to aggravated vehicular assault and other charges Friday, Aug. 28, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office said.
Khan will face a two- to six-year prison sentence at his next hearing on Friday, Oct. 30, authorities said.
He was behind the wheel of a 2016 Mercedes Benz E350 traveling northbound on Deer Park Avenue through Deer Park on May 17, 2025, when he struck another vehicle near the intersection …
Two LI Pilgrims Among Thousands Missing After Catastrophic Nepal Floods
At least two Long Islanders are among dozens of Americans and thousands of people missing following catastrophic flooding in Nepal.
Jitendra Manubhai Patel, 72, of Merrick, and Amita Amin, 67, of Roslyn Heights, were on a religious pilgrimage when the devastating flood struck, Newsday reported.
The two were part of a tour group and haven’t been heard from since Wednesday, Aug. 26, Amin’s daughter-in-law, Aditi Patel, told Newsday. They were traveling alongside Patel’s mother, Tejal Vyomesh Patel, 64, of New Jersey.
Nearly 600 deaths have been confirmed and more than 2,500 people remain mis…
LI Father Of Three Faces Multiple Surgeries After Being Ejected In Terrifying Crash
A Long Island man is facing multiple surgeries after he was ejected in a one-car crash, his loved ones said.
Michael Schmid, 51, of Oakdale, was hospitalized in critical condition following the Friday, Aug. 21 wreck on Riverview Court, the Suffolk County Police Department said.
“He has suffered multiple injuries and will need multiple surgeries as he begins what we know will be a long and challenging recovery,” organizer Evangeline Dowd wrote in a GoFundMe for Schmid and his family.
“His wife, Kelly, and their children, Michael, Kennedy, and Leighton, are standing by his side through all …
Naked LI Man, 19, Arrested With Undressed Teen Girl In Car: Police
A 19-year-old Long Island man was found naked in a car with a 14-year-old girl, police said.
Victor Elizade, of Riverside, and the girl were parked in the vehicle at the David Sarnoff Preserve in Riverhead around 9 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 22, the Southampton Town Police Department said.
A Southampton cop was on patrol of the nature preserve and spotted a suspicious vehicle, authorities said. The officer saw the teenagers inside “and both subjects were not clothed while seated in the car,” Southampton police said.
Elizade was arrested and charged with child endangerment, then released on an app…
Serial LI Bank Robber Caught With ‘Give Me $10,000’ Demand Note Admits Two More Heists: DA
A serial bank robber has pleaded guilty to two more robberies just a few years after being released from prison, authorities said Friday, Aug. 28.
Brian Blackford, 52, of Kings Park, admitted to robbing two Flagstar bank branches in December 2025, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office said.
After pleading guilty Thursday, Aug. 27 to two counts of third-degree robbery and cocaine possession, Blackford faces five and a half to 11 years in prison, according to the district attorney’s office.
Blackford’s name, age, hometown, and general appearance match a man who was charged in seven b…
LI Pit Bull Owner Locked Up After Dog Mauls 2-Year-Old Boy And She Ignores Probation: DA
A Long Island woman who initially dodged jail time when her dog mauled a toddler has been locked up for violating probation, authorities said Thursday, Aug. 27.
Amy Willi, 48, got an eight-month jail sentence at her hearing Wednesday, Aug. 26, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office said.
After cutting a plea deal in the dog attack, Willi ignored almost all the terms of her three-year probation agreement, prosecutors said.
Willi’s legal troubles began March 14, 2023, when a 2-year-old boy and his uncle were playing in their front yard, across the street from Willi’s home in Mastic, …
