Thief Stole Purses From Animal Shelter: Cops

CALVERTON, NY — A thief nabbed two purses from the grounds of the Riverhead Animal Shelter on Tuesday, police confirmed.

According to a release from the North Fork Animal Welfare League, at 10:15 a.m., an unknown female entered the grounds on Youngs Ave. in Calverton and stole two purses, one belonging to an employee and the other to a volunteer, from two vehicles on-site.

The purses were found by a local resident — who reported the incident to the park manager —at the Oakland Ridge Estates Mobile Park Home on Osborn Ave. in Riverhead, both police and the NFAWL said.

Wallets, cash, and a camera were missing from the recovered purses; the employee’s debit card had been used at an Empire Gas Station at approximately the same time, the NFAWL said.

"The shelter’s surveillance video footage from the time of the incident will be reviewed in order to help identify the perpetrator. However, in response to the theft, a beefed-up security surveillance system will be installed at both North Fork Animal Welfare League facilities," in both Riverhead and Peconic, a release said.

“We have never had an incident of this type before,” Gillian Pultz, executive director of NFAWL, said. “To ensure the safety and security of our animals, our employees, and our volunteers, we will have a state-of-the-art video camera system installed as quickly as possible. We ask that anyone who might know who did this to please contact the authorities — we rely on our community to help take care of the animals and we hope they will help us put this incident to rest. The employees and volunteers of our shelter give so much already; it is with great sadness that we have to resort to increased security because this unconscionable act of someone so callous.”

Anyone with information in regard to the incident is asked to contact the Riverhead Police Department's detective division at 631 727-4500 ext. 321. All calls will remain confidential.

Patch file photo by Ashley Pinciaro.