Vigils, Fundraisers For Boy Cops Say Was Left To Die In Garage

CENTER MORICHES, NY — A community left reeling after Thomas Valva, 8, died after he was kept in a frigid basement overnight — his father, NYPD officer Michael Valva and his fiance Angela Pollina have been charged with second degree murder — is coming together with vigils and fundraisers to to help Thomas' mother and the two brothers he left behind.

To start, on Sunday, a vigil has been planned for Kaler's Pond Park, located on Montauk Highway in Center Moriches, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

On Monday, a candlelight prayer service will be held at 5 p.m. St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church, located at 25 Ocean Avenue in Center Moriches.

"We are heartbroken and devastated upon hearing the tragic news of the passing of Thomas Valva, a member of our parish community and a student in our Faith Formation program. We have also been alerted to and overwhelmed by the news surrounding his passing. In a spirit of prayer and hope, we invite everyone to a special Candlelight Evening Prayer at St. John’s Church at 5 p.m. on Monday, January 27, 2020. This is the time that Thomas and his siblings would regularly attend classes here. It will be a service that is comfortable for people of all ages and all faiths. Today and in the days ahead please pray for Thomas and his family," a Facebook post said.

Next, on Tuesday at 6 p.m., the Center Moriches United Methodist Church, located at 464 Main St. in Center Moriches, will be hosting an "Evening of Prayer, Healing & Hope” for the community. "All churches, pastors and community are welcomed as we come together as one broken heart let us seek God who is our restorer," the post said.

The Center Moriches Fire Department is planning a "Community Fundraiser for the Family of Thomas Valva" On Wednesday, Jan. 29 and Thursday, Jan. 30, the fire department will open its doors to accept donations.

"We will be collecting gift cards and monetary donations that will benefit Thomas’s immediate family. Suggestions for gift cards are Visa cards, Walmart, Target, supermarkets and local restaurants like Applebee's, IHOP, Panera Bread, Dairy Queen, TGI Fridays, McDonald's and Burger King, to name a few," the Center Moriches Fire Department said in a Facebook post.

Donations will be accepted from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the main meeting room on the 2nd floor.
For questions regarding the fundraiser please contact Maria Renzetti at 631-484-4085 or by email to Mrenzetti@centermorichesfd.com.

In addition, a new GoFundMe page, "In Memory of Thomas Valva," has been set up to benefit Thomas' mother Justyna Zubko-Valva, two brothers and extended family. "On January 17, 2020 Justyna Zubko-Valva received a call that no mother should ever receive. . . This fundraiser's sole purpose is to benefit the family of Thomas Valva. His mother, two brothers and entire extended family here and abroad have an extremely long road ahead of them," the page said.

Scores of shocked and heartbroken mourners have turned to social media with questions about a system many say failed an 8-year old boy.

Despite Thomas' mother's Twitter page, which reads like a cry for help from the Zubko-Valva, reports indicate that Child Protective Services was aware of the abuse.

The Suffolk County Department of Social Services, News 12 said, stated that CPS was notified about the abuse more than a year before Thomas Valva died.

On Friday, Suffolk County homicide detectives arrested Valva and Pollina, of 11 Bittersweet Lane in Center Moriches, and charged them with second-degree murder, police said.

Although his father initially reported that Thomas died after a fall in the driveway, gruesome new details emerged Friday at a press conference by Suffolk County Police Commissioner Geraldine Hart.

Thomas Valva officially died of hypothermia, according to the Suffolk County Medical Examiner, Hart said. "We believe that he was kept in the garage overnight preceding his death," Hart said, adding that when he was found, the boy's body temperature was 76 degrees and he had head and facial injuries that did not align with Valva's account of what had happened.

At Valva and Pollina's arraignments, Newsday reported, Assistant District Attorney Laura Newcombe said a recording from the home on Jan. 17 included a child asking: "Why can't Thomas walk?" Pollina, Newcombe said, "because he's hypothermic," adding, "When you're washed with cold water and it's freezing you get hypothermia." According to Newsday, Newcombe then said Valva was heard saying: : "He keeps face planting on the concrete."

The New York Post added that Pollina, according to the recordings, asked Valva, "Do you know why he's falling?" Valva reportedly responded, according to Newcombe: "Because he's cold. Boo f–king hoo."

On Saturday, Zubko-Valva posted a note on Twitter: "I want to personally thank each one of you for love and support towards me and my children. I am still extremely heartbroken, and devastated over the cruel and tragic death of my little angel Thomas that could have been preventable. Please continue keeping us in your prayers."

Matthew Tuohy, a Huntington based attorney, represents Pollina, and represented Valva just for the arraignment: "She's saying she's innocent and is not the cause of the child's death. She maintains her innocence 100 percent," he said.

Valva's attorney Austin Manghan of Riverhead declined to comment when reached by Patch.

According to Suffolk County District Attorney Tim Sini, both Valva and Pollina were held without bail. Their next court date is Wednesday, according to online records.