Skip to main content

Plate Readers Pay Off for Police

Thu, 09/24/2020 - 09:02

After watching her for a few hours on the night of Sept. 7, police said that "suspicious activity" caused them to stop Davis Eames of Neck Path in Springs on Route 27 near Old Montauk Highway in Amagansett, and to search the black fanny pack she was wearing around her waist. It allegedly contained seven boxes of "Fat Donald's 100-mg THC" and six more individually packaged THC-infused "gummy ropes," each labeled "Nerds Medicated Rope/400 mg THC." Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. Ms. Eames appeared in East Hampton Town Justice Court on Sept. 16 and will be return at a future date.

Ethan Nelson, 29, and Mark Pentangelo, 27, both of Hartsdale, N.Y., were arrested on Saturday night after they knocked down metal fencing around a house on Beech Street in Montauk and were then found walking around the house without the homeowner's permission, according to East Hampton Town police. The pair were charged with criminal trespassing, remaining unlawfully in a dwelling, and criminal mischief with the intent to damage property, misdemeanors. They were held overnight and will be arraigned on Oct. 8 in Town Justice Court.

There were quite a few traffic stops resulting in arrests last week. At 2 a.m. on Sept. 14, Eriberto Cruz of Brooklyn, 30, was pulled over on Montauk Highway near Pantigo Place in East Hampton. Town police found one acetaminophen pill and six "partial green pills" in his fanny pack. He will appear in court on Tuesday.

Wilson Manuel-Quisque of Springs was stopped on Springs-Fireplace Road last Thursday and charged with lacking a required ignition interlock device after police ran a computer check on his 2015 Ford.

The night before, near Poxabogue Pond Road in Sagaponack, Antonio Peralta of Montauk, 59, was charged with driving with a suspended registration. 

At 1 a.m. on Sept. 14, a 2016 Honda driven by Robinson Rosario of Brooklyn, 29, was flagged by a police plate scanner on Montauk Highway near Skimhampton Road in East Hampton. He was charged with aggravated unlicensed operation.

Armando Cabrera-Leiva of Flanders, 59, was similarly charged that evening, while driving his 2007 Chevrolet van down Long Lane in East Hampton. His driving privileges had been suspended, police said, for failure to submit to a blood-alcohol test. 

Sept. 14 was a busy day on the roads for police. Keith Ellis, 49, of East Hampton was also charged that evening with aggravated unlicensed operation. Town police stopped his 2008 Dodge pickup truck on Hand's Creek Road near Stephen Hand's Path in East Hampton.

On Sept. 16, Daniel Camacho, 24, of East Hampton was arrested on the same charge, plus speeding in a school zone. East Hampton Village police said they clocked his 2016 Toyota at 32 miles per hour in the 20-m.p.h. zone by the Middle School on Newtown Lane. A license check showed five suspensions from 2016 and 2019.

All six drivers are scheduled to be in Justice Court on Wednesday.

Raymond Pettigrew of Sag Harbor, 52, was to have appeared in East Hampton Justice Court yesterday. Town police charged him early on the morning of Sept. 14 with aggravated unlicensed operation of a 2005 Chevrolet farm vehicle and operating with suspended registration. He was pulled over on Abraham's Path by the East Hampton Golf Club in Amagansett.

Later that same morning, Diego Minchaia, 49, of Bridgehampton was also charged with operating a vehicle with suspended registration. Sag Harbor Village police stopped his 2012 Chevrolet van on Ferry Road in North Haven and confirmed a 2020 insurance lapse. He was released for a Friday, Oct. 2, date in Sag Harbor Justice Court.

Sag Harbor police were alerted on Sept. 15 by their license plate reader that Traci Angermaier's 2013 Fiat had a possibly suspended registration. It was confirmed at the intersection of Burke and Bay Streets that Ms. Angermaier's insurance had lapsed in 2018. The 51-year-old driver, who lives in Mattituck, will also be in court on Oct. 2.

So will Jeremy Allen, 39, of Flanders, who faces the same charge as well as speeding. Sag Harbor police stopped his 2018 Mercedes-Benz on Hampton Street after clocking it at 46 m.p.h. in a 20-m.p.h. zone. His license had been suspended twice, they reported, once last year for refusal to submit to a chemical test.

Eric Anderson, 68, of New York City will join them. He was charged on Friday near Estia's Little Kitchen, on the Bridgehampton-Sag Harbor Turnpike, for driving without registration. Police reported that the front-seat passenger in his Subaru Forester told them she had Covid-19. 
 

They Know When You've Been Bad or Good

East Hampton Village is now home to 14 Flock license plate reader surveillance cameras, which amounts to one for every 108 full-time residents, if you go by the 2020 census data. They're heralded by local police for aiding in enforcement and investigations, but they use a technology that has proven controversial nationally with those concerned about civil liberties.

Dec 25, 2025

On the Logs 12.25.25

Responding Sunday night to a noise complaint from Wainscott Hollow Road, an officer heard loud music from a house and knocked on the door. The woman who answered said they were having a Christmas party.

Dec 25, 2025

Defied a Restraining Order

An East Hampton man was charged with a felony last week, accused of violating an active order of protection.

Dec 24, 2025

Town Police Dept. Ready for New Duties

The East Hampton Town Police Department says it is ready to take on dispatch responsibilities starting in January when it assumes responsibilities from East Hampton Village and becomes the primary Public Safety Answering Point, or P.S.A.P., in the town.

Dec 18, 2025

 

Your support for The East Hampton Star helps us deliver the news, arts, and community information you need. Whether you are an online subscriber, get the paper in the mail, delivered to your door in Manhattan, or are just passing through, every reader counts. We value you for being part of The Star family.

Your subscription to The Star does more than get you great arts, news, sports, and outdoors stories. It makes everything we do possible.