Garden City Officer Injured While Arresting Burglar

The Garden City Police Department reported the following incidents for the week ending Sept. 4.

• A Weyford Terrace resident reported he found numerous scratches on the trunks of two vehicles parked in his driveway on Aug. 27
• Upon investigation of a July 22 incident that occurred at a Franklin Avenue spa, Garden City Detectives arrested a 58-year-old man from New Hyde Park for forcible touching and sexual abuse on Aug. 27.
• A vehicle was observed by an officer committing numerous aggressive driving violations from Golf Club Lane to Washington Avenue on Aug. 27. Upon investigation, the driver, a 46-year-old man from East Meadow, was arrested for DWI, passing two stop signs, passing two red traffic lights and multiple unsafe lane usage violations.
• Packages were reported stolen from the front porch of a Meadow Street residence on Aug. 28.
• As a result of a traffic investigation on Lefferts Road on Aug. 28, a 66-year-old woman from East Islip was charged with driving with a suspended license and improper turn.
• At 6 a.m. on Aug. 29, officers investigated a burglary report at a 3rd Place home. The incident occurred between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m, while the family was asleep during the incident. Apparent entry was through the kitchen window where the screen was found removed. Property was removed from the kitchen. The rear patio door was also found to be damaged. Evidence was collected at the scene and submitted for forensic testing.
• An officer was informed by a village employee of a suspicious person inside a village-owned vehicle parked in the Garden City employee parking field on Aug. 29. The officer discovered the man inside the vehicle and determined he was trying to steal it. The 20-year-old man from Hempstead was placed under arrest for attempted grand larceny.
• At 12:20 a.m. on Aug. 30, police headquarters received a call from a Franklin Court resident who said two people were in her house and when she confronted them, they fled the scene on bikes. They apparently entered through an open window by removing the screen. Responding officers saw one of the men on a bike on Garden Street and after a chase, apprehended him on Meadow Street. During the arrest, police say the 37-year-old man from Hempstead resisted arrest and assaulted one of the officers, who suffered a knee injury. NCPD canine and NCPD helicopter units, along with the Hempstead Police Department, responded to assist with the search for the second man. A bike was recovered, however, the second man was not found. Police later received a call from a Magnolia Street resident who said he saw a man in his car, which was parked in his driveway. Officers immediately responded and upon investigation, determined the person in the vehicle was the second man involved in the burglary. He was placed under arrest. Upon further investigation, it was determined this man was also responsible for the 3rd Place burglary that occurred on Aug. 29. The first man was charged with burglary, assault of a police officer, criminal mischief to a police vehicle and resisting arrest. The second man, 26, of Hempstead, was charged with two counts of burglary and trespassing.
• A vehicle was observed by an officer travelling south on Washington Avenue on Aug. 31 when it passed a red light on Meadow Street while two pedestrians were attempting to cross the street. The car was stopped and upon investigation, the driver, a 40-year-old man from Hempstead, was arrested and charged with aggravated DWI, driving with a suspended license and passing a red traffic signal.
• The department investigated an identity theft report where an unknown person opened an unauthorized online checking account using a resident’s personal information without permission on Sept. 1.
• A vehicle was stopped on Old Country Road by an officer for excessive speed (50 MPH) on Sept. 2. Upon investigation, the driver, a 23-year-old an from Huntington Station, was arrested for DWI and excessive speed.
• A vehicle was stopped for passing a red light on Hilton Avenue at 11th Street on Spet. 3. Upon investigation, the driver, a 40-year-old man from Hempstead, was arrested for driving with 12 license suspensions, passing a red traffic light, a Nassau County animal control warrant and a Hempstead Village traffic warrant.
• Officers responded to New Hyde Park Road on Sept. 3 where a vehicle struck a utility pole. The driver, an 82-year-old woman from Mineola, suffered a chest injury and was transported by ambulance to a local hospital. The pole was damaged causing some wires to hang low and others to fall to the ground. Traffic was detoured from the area until the pole was repaired.
• An officer was assigned to a traffic enforcement detail in the vicinity of the middle school on Sept. 3 when he stopped a vehicle on Cherry Valley Avenue for travelling 38 MPH in a 20 MPH school zone. Upon investigation, the driver, a 27-year-old man from Queens, was charged with driving with five license suspensions, use of a portable electronic device while driving and excessive speed in a school zone.