Matthew Norklun first publicly stepped into the whole dogs-on-beaches mess when, on Sept. 3, 2008, he left a bag of dog feces — duly labeled with the date and name of the beach where it had been collected — on the steps of East Hampton Village Hall. He was found guilty of littering, and fined $500.

    “I’m just trying to help out,” he said in an interview with The Star this week, when asked to explain the four phone calls he has made since May 8 to the East Hampton Village Police Department, to report dogs running wild on Georgica Beach.

    As of the second Sunday of May, the ordinance banning dogs and vehicles from the beach between the hours of 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. is in full effect.

    For the past 20 years, Mr. Norklun, an actor and successful magazine and advertising model (and onetime lifeguard) who lives in East Hampton, has tried to do his part to help rid village beaches of animal waste. “You’re barefoot, you’re walking in urine, you’re walking in feces, why is that acceptable?” he asked.

    His usual tactic is to approach people on the beach who have not cleaned up after their dogs, and politely ask them to do so. Sometimes this works, he said, sometimes it does not.

     Frustrated with a problem that just hasn’t gone away, Mr. Norklun has gotten into the habit of calling in the cavalry. “When the police write a ticket, it has more impact than someone asking you to not do it,” he said.

    Police responded to two of Mr. Norklun’s recent complaints by informing dog owners of the ordinance; in the other two cases, the dogs were gone by the time they arrived.

    According to Chief Gerald Lar­sen, Mr. Norklun’s are the only complaints to have come forward thus far this season.

    “We don’t have officers patrolling the beach full time yet,” said Chief Larsen.

    With summer looming, Mr. Norklun and the police expect violations to pile up in the weeks ahead. “All the signs may not be in place at this point, but we’re gearing up, and everything will be in place by Memorial Day,” said Chief Larsen.

    In the meantime, Mr. Norklun is staunch in his efforts to rein in the dogs. “I saw a dog kill a seal one day,” he said. “I’ve been attacked. I’ve become the dog Nazi. Now people know me. I stopped one woman on the beach with her dog, and she said, ‘Oh, you’re that guy.’ ”   

    Despite the lone-ranger reputation he may have earned in some dog-walker circles, Mr. Norklun has behind-the-scenes emotional and financial support. His littering fine was paid for by admirers from Florida to East Hampton, he said. “Almost everyone who contributed said, ‘Look, don’t use my name.’ ”

    Mr. Norklun had his own explanation for why his supporters might be reticent: “Dealing with the village board is like dealing with Tony Soprano,” he said. “You ruffle some feathers, and you’re not going to get a building permit or anything that is discretionary to the village board.”

    While Mr. Norklun admits many people do not agree with his methods, he claims that there are a greater number who appreciate his efforts, and who have thanked him for taking action that they haven’t had the nerve to take themselves.

    “Nobody wants to deal with it. I do go to the beach every day, so I care about it. It’s time to stop being polite. The dogs certainly are not.”

Amagansett

John Ryan, the caretaker at the Amagansett Beach Association on Indian Wells Highway, noticed that exterior copper pipes on buildings there were removed sometime between April 1 and May 4. The 200 feet of half-inch pipe and one copper backflow valve were estimated to be worth $416.

Cathy Damm, the manager at the Bass outlet store in Amagansett Square, reported on May 9 that a front window there was broken sometime the night before.

East Hampton

A garage door window and an outdoor light were broken at Nancy Ellman’s house on Central Avenue between April 22 and May 6. Police said someone used a BB gun to cause the damage.

Randy Steyert’s Dodge was hit with a beer bottle while it was parked on Whooping Hollow Road on the night of May 10 or the following morning. The rear driver’s-side door and mirror were damaged.

East Hampton Village

Frances Morey of Amy’s Lane reported a sick raccoon in the vicinity of nearby Amy’s Court on May 9. It attempted to attack her and her dog, she said. Mange was suspected, and the raccoon was euthanized on the spot.

At the Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter, a cellphone valued at $499 was taken from a locker in the men’s locker room on May 11.

Regina Lynch complained about parking on Cooper Lane last Thursday. There were construction vehicles blocking her driveway, she said, but when police arrived no such vehicles were found.

Someone from the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation saw a seal on the beach at Georgica Pond last Thursday. The responding officer determined that the seal was in good condition, and it returned to the sea as the officer departed.

Four wooden village benches have been stolen over the past two weeks, Michael Boucker told police on Friday. The benches were valued at $3,240.

Montauk

Startled by a loud noise outside her house on Kirk Avenue on the night of May 5, Diane Koelpin saw a figure near her mailbox. She identified the person to the police, and although he denied any wrongdoing he offered to replace the damaged mailbox.

While Vincent Frasca was out on his boat on May 9, his boat trailer stayed behind at the West Lake Drive launch ramp. After Mr. Frasca brought his boat back up onto the trailer and drove to the West Lake Marina, he realized that its license plate was missing.

Emily and Mark Borek returned to their summer house on South Elroy Drive on Friday to find the back door open, clothes in the kitchen, and a blue cup in the bathroom sink. None of the items belonged to the Boreks, who had not been at the house since March 15. There was also a duck blind at the back of their property, which is on Fort Pond. The blind was not there previously, and three of the Boreks’ duck decoys were found inside it.

A man called Karin Gosman a profanity at Gosman’s restaurant on Saturday, she told police. There were no witnesses. Ms. Gosman said the man is a repeat offender. The man in turn said Ms. Gosman used a profanity against him. Police advised the two to avoid each other.

Springs

After locking up her bike at the Springs School on May 2, Lucinda Murphy returned about three hours later to find the red 10-speed gone. She valued the bike at $200.

Dawn Flagg noticed that two birdbaths and a Havahart trap went missing from her property on Copeces Lane sometime between May 9 and last Thursday. A landscape company was working at her house at that time, she said.

A harassing phone call was made to Barbara and Jeffrey Marcus’s house on Sycamore Drive on Friday. Ms. Marcus told police she felt threatened. She said such calls have been made repeatedly. The alleged caller was warned against doing so again.

    An April 30 incident in which an East Hampton Town engineer’s name and departmental phone number were spray-painted on the outside wall of the public bathrooms at the intersection of South Emerson Avenue and South Edison Street in Montauk has come to a close. A town employee, William Link of Kopka Court, East Hampton, revealed to police that he was responsible.

    Town police arrested Mr. Link on May 6 and charged him with third-degree criminal mischief. He was charged with the felony because of the amount of the damages — more than $250. He was additionally charged with making graffiti, a misdemeanor, and possession of marijuana, a violation. The marijuana was allegedly discovered in his Parks and Recreation Department vehicle when he was arrested.

    The graffiti was considered serious enough to warrant an executive-session discussion of it by the town board. There was some concern for the safety of the town engineer, Tom Talmage.

    Regarding potential disciplinary action by the town, Supervisor Bill Wilkinson said in an e-mail message Tuesday that he does not comment on “personnel transactions or pending appropriate discipline.”

    Mr. Talmage consulted on the construction of the bathrooms, made from modular buildings. After they had been put in place, an error was discovered: A section of a waste-line pipe that should have been cast iron had instead been installed as PVC pipe, Mr. Wilkinson confirmed this week.

    Although at first it was feared that in order to correct the mistake the buildings would have to be lifted, a switch of the pipes was easily made, Councilwoman Julia Prince, who has overseen the project, said Tuesday. The project remains well within budget and on schedule, she said, with the facilities expected to be open by Memorial Day.

    East Hampton has been under pressure from the Suffolk County Health Department to provide restroom facilities for users of the nearby section of ocean beach, Edison Beach. According to the Health Department, there must be bathrooms at public bathing beaches — those protected by lifeguards. After a drowning incident some years ago, the town decided the downtown beach must be protected.

    The Health Department threatened to shut down the beach until the restroom facilities were provided but gave the town a waiver last year, allowing the use of a portable facility instead.

With Reporting by Joanne Pilgrim

East Hampton

Mike Dillon of Beechwood Court reported to police on May 3 that while he was mowing and mulching his lawn at around 8 p.m. an irate neighbor began yelling at him about the noise he was making. The neighbor then threw his cigar in Mr. Dillon’s face and shoved him, yelling all the while. Mr. Dillon declined to press charges, and the neighbor promised to apologize.

East Hampton Village

Police issued a number of summonses to garbage truck drivers last week for collecting trash before 7 a.m. Last Thursday, Friday, and Saturday officers ticketed drivers for Jet Sanitation, Winters Brothers, and Norsic Sanitation.

Last Thursday at about 7:45 p.m. an officer noticed a number of vehicles parked along Montauk Highway in a no-stopping zone near the Boathouse restaurant. Thirty summonses were issued. The village fire marshal was called and reported that the restaurant was over its legal capacity by 60 people. Staff members there were told not to let any more patrons inside until the crowd was smaller.

Priscilla Turner phoned police on Saturday morning to report that a golden retriever named Rex was running in traffic on Newtown Lane. The dog was corralled and taken to the East Hampton Veterinary Clinic, where its owner was identified and the two reunited.

Springs

Barrett Hawes of Springs-Fireplace Road told police on April 26 that a DVD he was expecting from Netflix was stolen from his mailbox, as had happened three days earlier, when a Netflix wrapper was left on the side of the road. No other mail was stolen, and the post office was notified.

        A small plane in the final stages of landing was blown off a runway at East Hampton Airport on Daniel’s Hole Road on Saturday afternoon at about 4, incurring substantial damage but resulting in no injuries to those on board.

    The Cessna 182 single-engine plane was coming in normally when a strong gust of wind out of the north caused it to be blown nearly 200 feet off the runway, onto the grass in an “object free zone,” a safety area established by Federal Aviation Administration regulations. The Cessna’s landing gear reportedly collapsed as it veered off the runway. Its pilot, Lisa McCarthy, and a passenger, Tina Alano, were not harmed.

    Ms. McCarthy, reached by phone yesterday, declined to comment on the incident.

    James Ciccone, an inspector with the F.A.A., responded to the scene Saturday but did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

    Jim Brundige, East Hampton Airport’s manager, said that the member of his staff who was at the scene of the accident on Saturday was on vacation this week and unavailable for comment.

    The Cessna is registered to MAM Aviation L.L.C. of New York City, according to F.A.A. records.

    East Hampton Town Councilman Dominick Stanzione released a statement on the matter on Monday stressing a strong safety record at the airport.

    “The incident was clearly minor,” Mr. Stanzione’s statement read. “It would be misleading to read anything more into this incident than a one-time unusual accident.”

    Mr. Stanzione’s statement was related to concerns that a music festival that may be held on a closed runway at the airport this August could pose a danger to concertgoers, should a similar accident occur with as many as 9,500 people nearby.

    “The aircraft stopped . . . well outside even the farthest of several layers of parameter fencing proposed for the concert venue,” Mr. Stanzione’s statement said. “The accident was not a threat to the proposed concert venue. Importantly, safety and security protocols relative to the proposed concert venue require review and approval of the F.A.A.”

    The F.A.A. has yet to rule on the safety of the planned event. However, before Saturday’s incident, some of the private carriers at the airport had voiced worry that the chaos of a large concert and the increased air traffic of an August weekend might make for a dangerous combination.

Amagansett

Vivian Moss of Treasure Island Drive reported on April 19 that someone had removed copper pipes from her outdoor shower. Ms. Moss said a friend of her grandson’s spending the night there remembered hearing noises on April 9.

Christine Martin, the manager at Bayberry Nursery on Montauk Highway, reported on April 25 that six plants were taken from gardens on the northeast part of the property. Police said a security camera at the adjacent Capital One Bank caught a dark-colored pickup truck making a U-turn after the theft.

East Hampton

A sign was reported stolen from the split-rail fence along Janette Goodstein’s driveway on Rose Avenue on Saturday, the theft having taken place sometime during the previous week. The sign, green with white lettering, read, “Rose Ave. Private.”

Carl Ballreich of Boatheader’s Lane returned to his Chevrolet Venture on Sunday morning to find the rear window shattered. Nothing was taken from inside. He said the damage would cost $260 to repair. In a previous incident, a side window was broken. Mr. Ballreich said neighbors at the Whalebone Apartments might be responsible.

Jamie Pillco of Lotus Avenue reported on April 19 that sometime in the previous day three of the tires on his 2004 Hyundai Sante Fe were deflated.

East Hampton Village

An East Hampton Village police dispatcher got in touch with the Long Island Power Authority on April 25 after an officer reported that a Suffolk Cement truck had pulled down a low-hanging utility wire. The power authority said it would send a crew to repair a support wire and replace the rotting pole.

Lost in the fog at Two Mile Hollow Beach at about 7 p.m. on April 25, a woman hailed an officer on patrol. The officer gave her a ride back to her car, which was parked on Old Beach Lane.

Last Thursday shortly after 6 p.m., police responded to another fog-related call, this one from a Further Lane residence where a man was seen peering through a gate. An officer found a man walking near Spaeth Lane. He said he had been at the beach but had become turned around in the fog. After the conversation, the man was pointed in the right direction and sent on his way.

Montauk

Carlos Nieves was setting up his computer at the Wave Inn on Elmwood Avenue on April 25 when his iPhone was stolen from the hotel counter. The Amagansett resident alleged that two people who had entered the hotel to apply for summer work stole it. Police questioned them and they were allowed to leave.

On Saturday, someone sprayed orange paint on the outside wall of the public restrooms at South Edison Street and South Emerson Avenue. The scrawl identified Tom Talmage, a town engineer, and provided a number for the town’s engineering department. The incident was discussed in executive session at a recent town board meeting.

Springs

Karen McCaffrey of Manor Lane reported on April 27 that sometime between April 15 and April 24, while she was away on vacation, two screen windows at her house were cut and unlocked, but not removed. She told police it appeared that no one had gone inside.

East Hampton

On Friday, Charles J. Garland of Whooping Hollow Road told police someone made an unauthorized charge to his Chase bank account in the amount of $465.08. He reported that the money was used to pay a Verizon phone bill.

East Hampton Village

Mark Golden’s 2011 East Hampton Town Recycling Center permit was taken off his car on April 18 while it was parked on Lumber Lane.

Olney Gardiner Jr. told police on April 19 that while he was working at East Hampton Gym, he told a customer that he could not use his cellphone in the building. Allegedly, the man began to yell at Mr. Gardiner, who told him he was not welcome back to the gym.

Someone took a garden-worth of plants from Buckley’s Flower Shop on Montauk Highway on Friday night, Charles Limonius, the owner, told police. The total value of the flowers and bushes was nearly $1,000.

Montauk

Harry Ellis told police on Friday that after telling his son he wanted to remove the license plates from his 2003 Nissan X-Terra, his son left and has not been heard from since.

Springs

After spotting two youths in the parking lot of the Clearwater Beach Property Owners Association marina on April 3, Alfred Schaffer told police he came back the next day to find a split-rail fence taken apart and thrown in the parking lot. Mr. Schaffer said he also found broken glass and a hole in a kayak.

On April 18, Gino Bombace called police from his Meehan Terrace house to report that his car window was shattered by someone driving a Hamptons Proprietors truck.

Wainscott

After finding a rear door damaged and open at her mother’s Ardsley Road house on April 18, Suzanne Flanagan found the house key missing. A neighbor told police that he noticed two men cutting across the property earlier that week.

    A 24-year-old man was arraigned in Suffolk County Court in Riverhead on Friday after police from four East End departments alleged he was responsible for the theft of nearly $600,000 worth of fine art from houses in East Hampton, Southampton, Shelter Island, and Southold.

    Angel Giovanni Palencia of Medford, a native of Guatemala, faces charges of second-degree grand larceny and second-degree burglary, felonies, and is being held in Suffolk County jail in Riverside in lieu of $500,000 cash bail.

    The Suffolk County district attorney’s office announced last week that it believed Mr. Palencia took paintings, lithographs, a book of French stamps, and a silver tea set from six different houses. Approximately 40 pieces were stolen, and not all have been recovered.

    East Hampton Village police kept the investigation quiet, but Southampton Village police released some information on two thefts, one at Joanne Hallingby’s house on Captain’s Neck Lane, the other on Gin Lane, between January and February.

    However, it was art from a house on Lily Pond Lane in East Hampton Village that is reported to be the most valuable.  In all, police said, it was worth approximately $215,000 and included a painting called “In the Vineyard” by Daniel Ridgeway-Knight worth $140,000. Mr. Palencia allegedly sold the work for $1,500 to a Mineola art dealer.

    Twelve paintings taken from the Captain’s Neck Lane house had a combined value of $121,000. A painting from the Gin Lane house was valued at $10,000. The value of a painting from the Shelter Island house was unknown.

    Terry Wallace of the Wallace Gallery in East Hampton Village reported yesterday that he had sold two of the missing paintings to the Lily Pond Lane homeowner. That artwork was recovered after an auctioneer in St. Petersburg, Fla., who is a friend, asked Mr. Wallace about them. Although Mr. Wallace and village police declined to name the homeowner, The Star learned from other sources that the house is owned by Richard Parkoff.

 The Wallace Gallery paintings, one of a woman knitting in a garden and another of a girl sitting in a chair with an orange, had come to the attention of the Florida auctioneer through an art dealer on the North Fork. A Wallace Gallery tag was on the back of each.

     Mr. Palencia was reported to have worked as a carpenter at the Southold house, where the owner reported the theft of a painting worth $4,000. He was allegedly able to enter other houses through unlocked doors and windows. Mr. Spota said detectives found no evidence of forced entry at any of the houses.

    Whoever paid $1,500 for a painting as valuable as the Ridgeway-Knight work, Mr. Wallace said, would have “known what the market is.” He said art dealers have a responsibility to check the background of any work that comes through their doors. Expressing a similar opinion, Mr. Spota said he does not believe that Mr. Palencia worked alone. He reported that additional paintings were found at Mr. Palencia’s house that were not those reported missing. Mr. Spota also said that as more seasonal residents head out east this summer, more art will be reported missing.

    Mr. Palencia was charged on April 6 with six counts of burglary and one count of grand larceny, felonies, after the North Fork art dealer informed authorities that he was asked to buy the stolen art. According to Mr. Spota, Mr. Palencia had approached the dealer three times. The dealer notified police after the third try. Mr. Spota said the dealer, who asked to remain anonymous, had learned the art had been reported stolen after contacting an appraiser. 

    At his arraignment on Friday before Judge Stephen Braslow, Mr. Palencia pleaded not guilty to all charges. Each burglary charge carries a penalty of between 31/2 and 15 years’ imprisonment, while the grand larceny charge carries a 5-to-15-year penalty.

East Hampton

Kyle Paseka told police on March 31 that someone broke into her Maidstone Park Road house and took her daughter’s iPod and a pair of headphones. Ms. Paseka reported a separate burglary at the house on March 19.

Someone took two metal cable pullers from Stuart Vorpahl’s basement on Muir Boulevard on Saturday, he told police. Mr. Vorpahl said his basement door is usually unlocked but was not sure why anyone would take the items.

East Hampton Village

Christopher Tracey, the principal of the John M. Marshall Elementary School, told police on April 11 that a custodian at the school found a small bag of marijuana on the playground that morning. He requested additional patrols of the school grounds on the weekends.

A 33-year-old Brooklyn man was found sleeping in a cottage behind the empty Prime 103 restaurant on Montauk Highway at 10:30 p.m. on April 13. Police said the building was supposed to be vacant, but that the man was sleeping in an upstairs bedroom. They let the man stay the night.

Montauk

Two bottles of tequila were taken from Theodore Kellerman’s Fort Pond Road house on Saturday.

Sag Harbor

On Monday night, Deborah S. Tuma told police at headquarters that she had received an e-mail the day before indicating that her Paypal online account had to be updated. After she put in her information, she told police, she noticed two charges on the account that she did not authorize totaling $558 to be paid to Lufthansa.

On Friday, Natalie Wianecki told police that her wallet went missing from her coat pocket while she was at the Sag Harbor Elementary School.

Springs

After filing his 2010 tax return on April 11, Ricardo Gobello was informed by his accountant, George Hand, that someone had already filed a return using his name and Social Security number. Mr. Gobello, who lives on Thanet Way, was told by the I.R.S. that it would conduct an investigation.

Kimberly Notel, a police officer, reported on April 12 that someone tried to use her name, address, and Social Security number to open a bank account online. When she looked at her credit report, she noticed two others inquiries she had not made. Ms. Notel, who lives on Highland Boulevard, said she would make a complaint to the Social Security Administration.

When Tamara Arevalo borrowed her friend Salvador Fausto’s car on March 26, she said all four tires were slashed while it was parked at her Prospect Street house.

Wainscott

Kimberly Eads, a contractor working on Susanne Silverman’s Wainscott Northwest Road house, told police on April 11 that when she arrived at the job site that morning, the front door was open and the key was in the door. An upstairs room had been ransacked and $300 in cash, diamond earrings, a bracelet, and paperwork were gone.

Nothing was missing from Jody Bennett’s Bathgate Road house on April 11, her son told police, but both cars in the driveway had been rifled through, and the crawl space and side doors were open.

Sometime between March 13 and March 19, someone broke into William and Laraine Hayes’s Roxbury Lane house and had a party there, the couple’s daughter, Nadine Schlissel, told police.

A window in Leslie Basaldva’s East Gate Road house was broken and two wooden boxes were missing, she told police on Saturday.

    Two men were charged with driving while impaired last Thursday after police said they crashed their cars into each other at the intersection of King Street and Gingerbread Lane in East Hampton Village.

    Peter D. Grabowski, 28, did not stop at the stop sign on King Street, he told police, and Jason B. Carey, 39, who was headed down Gingerbread Lane, crashed into him at around 7:30 p.m.

    East Hampton Village police said both men appeared to be intoxicated. They charged Mr. Grabowski with driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor, and Mr. Carey with driving while ability impaired, a violation.

    Mr. Grabowski’s arrest report indicated that there is an active warrant for his arrest from the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency. Although he lives in Sag Harbor, Mr. Grabowski is reportedly a citizen of Australia.

    He was additionally charged with driving without a license and failing to stop at a stop sign, both violations.

    Both men were held overnight by police and arraigned in East Hampton Town Justice Court. Mr. Carey, who also lives in Sag Harbor, was arraigned by East Hampton Town Justice Lisa R. Rana and released on his own recognizance. Justice Rana released Mr. Grabowski on $1,000 bail.

    Village police nabbed another man they said was driving while intoxicated at 3:30 last Thursday morning.

    In addition to three driving while intoxicated charges, Ian Kelleher of Wainscott picked up a felony aggravated driving without a license charge. Mr. Kelleher also faced an elevated charge of aggravated driving while intoxicated.

    According to police, Mr. Kelleher moved from his lane unsafely and drove on the shoulder of Montauk Highway near Jericho Road that morning. He told police he had had “two or three vodkas” and allegedly failed roadside sobriety tests.

    Mr. Kelleher was also charged with moving from his lane unsafely, a misdemeanor. He was also cited for four violations, including failing to use a designated lane, driving on the shoulder, driving without a license, and driving without insurance.

    Justice Rana released Mr. Kelleher, 35, later that morning on $2,500 bail.

    Last Thursday, police charged Colin C. Keillor of East Hampton Village with driving while intoxicated and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Police said they found a prescription bottle with the label removed after they arrested Mr. Keillor at 12:50 a.m.

    According to reports, Mr. Keillor did not stop at the intersection of Cove Hollow Road and Route 114. Upon stopping him, police said he was unsteady on his feet and put him into a police vehicle. When an officer attempted to move Mr. Keillor’s car off the roadway, he found the prescription bottle. Police did not say what was in the bottle that would warrant the misdemeanor possession charge.

    Justice Rana released Mr. Keillor, 36, later that morning on $500 bail.

    On Feb. 16, East Hampton Town police charged Rosemarie A. Rash with driving while intoxicated after she allegedly failed to dim her high-beams when approaching an officer on Abraham’s Path near Accabonac Road in East Hampton.

    Police said Ms. Rash, who lives in Montauk, drove into the oncoming lane of traffic and then fumbled for her identification when she was pulled over by police. According to reports, Ms. Rash was “swaying forwards and backwards and had to raise her arms to keep herself balanced.”

    Ms. Rash, 69, was held overnight by police and arraigned the following morning by East Hampton Town Justice Catherine A. Cahill, who released her on her own recognizance.