Shelter Island Police Department blotter
Those named in arrest reports or receiving police summonses have not been convicted of a crime. In court, the charges against them may be reduced or withdrawn or the defendants may be found not guilty.
ARREST
Police arrested Christian A. Langendal, 39, of Shelter Island on Aug. 30 at 4:30 p.m. following an investigation. He was charged with unlawful eviction, a violation of the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law (RPAP). In evicting a Westmoreland tenant, Mr. Langendal had not followed the statutory eviction process, which has to involve the courts.
A case involving the RPAP law is unusual on Shelter Island, according to Police Chief James Read.
Mr. Langendal was issued a desk appearance ticket, released on his own recognizance and instructed to appear in Shelter Island Justice Court at a later date.
SUMMONSES
Nicole K. Derosa Padden of Montauk was driving on South Ferry Road when she was issued a ticket on Aug. 27 for operating a vehicle while the registration was suspended/revoked.
A bay constable gave a summons to Jose F. Ulloa of Rego Park on Aug. 29 for camping on the beach at Highberry Lane in Hay Beach.
Kenneth I. Schacter of New York City received a ticket on Aug. 29 for failure to stop at a stop sign on Manhanset Road.
During the week police conducted 25 traffic and distracted driving stops in the Center, the Heights, Silver Beach and Ram Island, resulting in 18 warnings and two tickets.
Traffic control officers issued 48 parking tickets.
ACCIDENTS
Mitchell B. Clark of Shelter Island was traveling eastbound on Congdon Road on Aug. 26 when he reported that he swerved onto the shoulder to avoid a deer in the roadway and hit several hedges. He left the scene of the accident and then later contacted the property owner to rectify the damage.
OTHER REPORTS
An anonymous caller reported smelling propane in the Cartwright vicinity on Aug. 25. An officer and the Shelter Island Fire Department (SIFD) checked the area; the SIFD located two empty propane tanks that were the cause of the odor.
A person reported at headquarters on Aug. 25 about possibly missing or stolen items on her property but had not gone through the items to make sure they were in fact missing. She was advised to search first before making a report.
A Longview resident said he had seen on his security camera someone in his backyard pool area. The area was searched and an extra patrol requested.
Also on the 25th, a caller reported a phone scam. A neighbor dispute in Silver Beach was called in and the complainant told to contact the building department about the disputed property line.
On Aug. 26, loud noise was reported at a Center residence. An officer found a group of people on a porch talking loudly. They said they would talk at a lower volume and apologized. Police received another noise complaint about a loud party with people screaming. An officer found young people on Wades Beach having a party around a small fire. They were advised of the complaint and told to properly put out the fire when they left; no alcohol was observed.
On the 26th, police were informed of a dispute in the Center over cutting down shrubbery on a property line. The person taking down the plantings was told to stop until the property line could be determined by a Building Department’s property survey.
A caller told police that a driver was acting aggressively in the Center on the 26th and “agitating cyclists.” The area was canvassed with negative results. Another caller reported a young person riding a go-cart on a Shorewood roadway. An officer located the youth, told him to stay off the road and notified the youth’s father.
A Dering Harbor resident phoned in a water main break under the driveway. The landscaper was notified and repaired the broken pipe.
On Aug. 27, an anonymous caller reported a plume of black smoke in Dering Harbor; the area was searched with negative results.
On that day, an officer responded to a VHF call of a boat with engine smoke in Noyac Bay. There was no fire but a broken cooling hose had created steam. The officer remained with the anchored boat until Sea Tow arrived.
Police were informed on the 27th that construction vehicles were blocking a Center roadway. The vehicles were gone when police arrived. Wires were down at a South Ferry Hills house; Verizon was notified. Speeding vehicles were reported on St. Mary’s Road and an extra patrol was requested.
The SIFD responded to a report of a brush fire by the Sylvester Manor barn; it was caused by a lightning strike to a nearby tree and had already been extinguished. A caller reported seeing a flame across the water on Ram Island but was unsure if it was indoors or out. An officer located a small camp fire in a backyard; there were no problems.
On Aug. 28, police were informed that two unknown people were sitting on the front lawn of a Center residence. Police searched the area with negative results. The same day, a tree limb resting on electrical wires created a hazardous condition in the Center; PSEG was notified.
Also on the 28th, a South Ferry Hills resident said he received an alert from his ring camera; the video showed a man in his driveway. An officer searched the premises and found an unlocked rear sliding door. A search inside showed no signs of any criminal activity, but an extra patrol was arranged.
Police received an anonymous complaint about youths throwing items off Second Bridge on the 28th. Eight young people were located, who said they were about to go swimming. They were told not to throw anything off the bridge and not to jump off it, either.
Starting on Aug. 28 and continuing through Aug. 29 and 30, police conducted beach and Environmental Conservation Law checks in Silver Beach, on Ram Island and Highberry Beach. On patrol on the 28th, an officer saw fires in Hay Beach; two campfires were located and the people involved were advised to ensure the fires were completely out and the trash cleaned up. They were told about town ordinances regarding glass, open fires and littering on the beach.
A complainant told police on the 28th that two vans had parked at Silver Beach and several people were unloading fish and camping gear, probably intending to fish all night. An officer found no parking violations and saw four people sitting/fishing on the beach; no camping equipment was found. The caller was advised that it was not against the law to fish overnight.
Police spotted a flipped-over sailboat at Jennings Point and were asked to stand by while the Sunfish was righted. That day, a woman told police that at 6 a.m. she saw a man in her driveway; she told him to leave and he did so. She was instructed to let police know if he returned.
On Aug. 30, a loud party was called in anonymously in Silver Beach. When police arrived, the people were inside and the noise had ceased; a person interviewed said the party would remain quiet.
A caller told police on that date that a boat had dragged its anchor and made contact with the caller’s boat anchored off Crescent Beach. A passenger on the caller’s boat reported minor wrist pain from fending off the other boat but medical treatment was declined. Both boats were anchored at a safe distance when police arrived. There was minor damage to the bow rail of the caller’s boat.
A Heights business reported that a woman had committed petit larceny by stealing three bathing suits.
Also on the 30th, a caller found a weapon on a front porch; police discovered that property had been removed from a Coecles Harbor cabin after it had been entered unlawfully.
During an ECL check, a bay constable warned a fisherman on Ram Island about keeping undersized porgies. ECL checks were also made in Silver Beach and South Ferry Terminal; 15 people were fishing and no problems were reported.
On Aug. 31, a caller reported that a pickup truck had tailgated her on Ram Island Road and then passed her on a double yellow line. The officer was delayed on another call and the vehicle was gone when he arrived.
Police were alerted by a caller to hikers in Mashomack whose car was still in the parking lot after closing time. An officer located the hikers on the Blue Trail and they were picked up by the caller.
Among other incidents, police provided three escorts, checked on the wellbeing of three people, responded to six lost and found reports, unlocked two vehicles with the keys inside and assisted three residents in their homes.
ALARMS
The SIFD responded to a fire alarm in Menantic. It was declared a false alarm caused by an electrical problem.
ANIMAL INCIDENTS
Dogs at large were reported on Wades Beach. The animal control officer (ACO) saw no dogs after 90 minutes of observation but noticed four people with dogs approaching the beach who left when they saw the animal control truck. Days later there was a similar report — and outcome — at Wades Beach.
Dogs loose at Crescent Beach and Shell Beach were reported; there were no dogs at Crescent Beach and one dog owner was warned about the town code at Shell Beach. A dog at large in the Heights was searched for unsuccessfully. The owner of a West Neck dog retrieved it before the ACO had arrived.
Through a security device, a Center caller noticed his dog was barking non-stop at his home. An officer found the dog trapped in a side room and let it out.
Barking dogs were reported in the Center but an ACO observed the area for 45 minutes and heard no violation of the town code.
An ACO was unable to capture two sick raccoons in Hay Beach. A third sick raccoon there was reported but not found; the same for a raccoon on Ram Island. An injured animal was reported in HiLo but was gone when police arrived. The ACO removed another injured animal. An orphaned animal was taken to the vet.
Two reports were received about the wellbeing of pets in Hay Beach. One caller said the animals had been left all day, reportedly without water. An ACO was asked to follow up. In the second report, the caller was concerned about the living conditions of a number of dogs in the home.
The ACO freed a hawk stuck in a screened porch in West Neck.
AIDED CASES
Shelter Island Emergency Medical Services teams transported five people to Eastern Long Island Hospital. A sixth person refused transport.
