Nassau Police Give Update On Massapequa Preserve Investigation

MASSAPEQUA, NY - Nassau Police announced at a press conference on Thursday the results of a search of the Massapequa Preserve following the discovery of human remains in Freeport on Wednesday.

According to Commissioner Patrick Ryder, on Monday police received a tip from a source stating that there was a body in the preserve by Ocean Avenue and Lake Court, which is within 50 yards of where the body of 19-year-old Julio Cesar Gonzales-Espantzay was found in April.

Two MS-13 gang members and two other have been arrested in connection to his murder.

Police then conducted a search of the area Wednesday evening and Thursday morning using cadaver dogs but did not find any remains.

"We don't know if it's a false tip or if she [the source] was confusing it with the victim that was recovered in March," Ryder said.

Despite the report, Ryder says the parks are safe within the paths and in the area where "normal people" walk or jog, However, he advises visitors not to go off the beaten path.

He also mentioned that the preserve, as well as other local parks and wooded areas, will have additional police presence.

In addition, Ryder said that Nassau currently has 59 missing people with six of those people believed to be associated with gangs in some way. Most of those people are believed to be undocumented.

On Wednesday, police found one of those missing people, a 13-year-old girl, in Hempstead at the apartment of a "gang-banger." She was returned to her family. Another girl was found in Far Rockaway and police are looking to return her to her family.

On Friday, Nassau County police recovered the remains of 16-year-old Angel Soler, of Roosevelt, from a wooded area in Roosevelt.

Police did not comment on the investigation into the remains found in Freeport, stating that it is a FBI investigation. That body remains unidentified.