Monthly Crime Report: Easily Caught Criminals, Graffiti on the Rise

Every month the First Precinct holds a community meeting and provided residents and local civic organizations insight on recent crimes, current trends and any new information relating to the Suffolk Police Department (SCPD).

The end of April and early May saw a number of arrests and police activity, and the First Precinct reported on major incidents and trends.

A special presentation by the Suffolk County Hate Crimes Task Force gave an overview on hate crimes in Suffolk County, and how they are classified and dealt with by the SCPD. Close to 600 arrests were made in the precinct during the past month, and police were able to nab a prolific house robber who mostly targeted Lindenhurst and West Babylon addresses.

Unlikely Graffitists

The battle against "tagging" and graffiti enthusiasts continues in the First Precinct, and the recent spate of graffiti incidents has led to the creation of a special graffiti task force, with a sergeant and four officers recording and pursuing all illegal spray painting. Police explained that not all graffiti is gang-related, and in fact, they've found a 40-year-old graffiti hobbyist with backpacks full of different color paint, and paint-stained hands.

One graffitist incorporated a special message into his images: police found a message giving a "shout-out" to the SCPD task force.

Commercial Burglaries

During the last month there were several commercial burglaries, of the type known as "smash and grab," typically done in the early morning hours by smashing a window of an establishment and taking petty cash on hand. Tradewinds Deli in the village was a recent target.

Another group of burglars, since arrested, targeted the National Grid warehouse on Cedar Street, and instead of making away with some scrap metal as they thought, ended up stealing $100,000 worth of circuitry and equipment.

Teen Robber on Camera

There was one "strong-arm" robbery that took place in Babylon, where a teen simulated carrying a weapon in order to rob another teen. The robber was apprehended after being seen on surveillance video.

Hateful Crimes

Detective Patricia Keller of the Hate Crimes Unit gave a presentation on her unit's work and the types of hate crimes they've seen in recent years in Suffolk, including church vandalism, neighbor harassment, and racial graffiti that landed several high school students with federal civil rights charges. Keller also detailed the types of crimes that although offensive to many, like burning crosses on private property and Ku Klux Klan rallies, may not be official hate crimes.

Useful Tool Against Phone Harassment

Any residents who are being threatened or annoyed by criminally harassing phone calls are encouraged by local police to dial *57 after the call, which allows the police to easily trace the caller. Residents would then need to open a police case to follow up on the tracing.