From drifting docks in Mattituck Inlet and a trailer overflowing with trash in Greenport, to a roommate dispute sparked by toilet paper, and a driver who police say tried to flee while already stuck in a median, this week’s Southold Town police blotter offers up another curious snapshot of life on the North Fork.
April 27 – Around 1:30 a.m., a Southold patrol officer observed a car “stuck in the median” on Middle Road in Mattituck, and began to make a traffic stop. When the officer turned on the car’s patrol lights, according to a police report, the driver “attempted to drive away but was stuck.” When the driver, Allan Mendozanavas, 32, of Mastic, exited the vehicle, he was “unsteady on his feet” and smelled of alcohol, before performing “poorly” on field sobriety tests, according to the report. He was arrested for alleged driving while intoxicated and transported to headquarters.
Sneezy does it
Around 11 a.m., police responded to a report of a vehicle failing to maintain its lane near Moores Lane and Route 48, according to a report, and made a traffic stop. The driver, who showed no signs of impairment, according to the report, told police he had “a sneezing fit,” which may have caused him to leave his lane. He was issued a summons for a brake light that was out, the report said.
April 29 – Around 10:30 a.m., police received a call about a woman who allegedly “drank from a bottle of vodka and proceeded to get into” her car and drive east on Adams St. Police canvassed the area but did not immediately locate the vehicle in question. The car was later tracked to the 73-year-old owner’s East Marion home, where it was observed parked and unoccupied.
Around 11 a.m., a Southold police marine unit officer was flagged in the water off Westview Drive in Mattituck, by a local resident who reported that a floating dock had broken free and was drifting down Mattituck Inlet. The homeowner had secured the floating dock to his own dock. Police notified the owner of the floating dock, who said he’d make arrangements to retrieve it from the thoughtful neighbor.
Trashy trailer
May 1 – A Greenport West man contacted police to report that an abandoned trailer “filled with trash” had been sitting near the corner of Wiggins St. and 8th St. for about a year. A responding officer found “no identifiable make, model, license plate or VIN number,” and confirmed that the vehicle was filled with trash. A canvass of the area was unable to locate the owner of the trailer, so police contacted the Village of Greenport, and “will continue to monitor [the trailer] on subsequent tours.”
Around 4 p.m., a married couple from Peconic arrived at police headquarters to report a series of incidents with a neighbor that have made them feel “uncomfortable,” according to a police report. The couple told police a 60-year-old Cuthchogue man, with whom they have “only engaged in small talk a couple times with over the year” has been “slowly driving past or stopping in front of their residence multiple times a day.” The same man “has been slowly driving past [the wife] multiple times, and [the husband] once,” according to the report. The couple told police that they’ve been “feeling very uncomfortable” with the individual’s “actions, to the point where [the wife] refuses to walk in her neighborhood.” It’s the first time they’ve brought their concerns to the police, according to the report. A detective will follow up with the individual “at his residence in the near future,” the report said.
Around 2 p.m., Southold police, acting on a request from the Town Attorney’s office, affixed “illegally moored/stored” stickers on a boat at Cutchogue Harbor Marina, and sent a certified letter to the boat’s owner, a North Carolina man, giving him one week to remove the boat, or it will be removed by the town and the costs of the removal will become a lien on the boat.
Drifting docks
Around 2:45 p.m., Southold police responded to Mattituck Inlet, between Point Pleasant Road on one side and Westview Dr. on the other, to address a series of floating dock sections that had broken free and were found moored to private docks along the inlet. At the request of the Town Attorney’s office, police “affixed Town of Southold notices” to each of the floating dock sections, advising that the docks were being “stored and moored illegally in Town waters without proper authorization. The owners of the dock sections were given one week to come forward and claim their property, after the which the Town would remove the dock sections and charge the expense to the owners.
Around 3:30 p.m., a Greenport woman contacted police to report a possible rental scam on South St. According to a police report, the woman saw an ad for an apartment for rent in Greenport, and messaged the landlord for more information. According to the report, the landlord or someone posing as the landlord sent back photos and information about the apartment, and told the Greenport woman it “would cost $120 to view the apartment.” After she sent the money via Zelle, the individual “requested more money or the [potential tenant] would be arrested, sued and possibly deported.” The woman went to police, and a Southold detective was notified.
Around 4 p.m., a Laurel woman reported a hit-and-run on Love Lane in Matittuck, that she said left “damage to the driver side rear quarter and bumper,” including what appeared to be a “slight red paint transfer.” Officers canvassed Love Lane seeking security cameras, and while one was located above one business, it was facing in the wrong direction, according to the report.
Around 8:30 p.m., police received a report of a “suspicious person” behind Mattituck Plaza. A responding officer located a 22-year-old Mattituck man behind the movie theater. He told police that he lives down the road and was just “finding a place to smoke.” He was “advised to find a different spot to smoke.” The man left the area without incident.
May 2 – Around 1:30 p.m., a Greenport West man contacted police to report a man “acting suspicious” who followed him home and appeared to be intoxicated. By the time police arrived, the man had told the apparently intoxicated man to leave him alone, and the man departed. When police caught up with the second man, according to a report, he did appear intoxicated and told police he was “frustrated” with the other man, but declined to say why. The complainant filed a notice of trespass against the intoxicated man, who was advised of the notice. No further action was taken, according to a report.
Around 2 p.m., Southold police and firefighters from Cutchogue and Southold’s departments responded to a report of a structure fire on Rogers Road in Southold. Upon arrival, emergency personnel observed dark smoke coming from the chimney. The firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze and a subsequent review by a town building inspector determined that the fire was caused by a crack in the wood burning stove flute pipe, according to a report.
Toilet paper feud
Around 5 p.m., a Laurel man, 62, got into an argument with his roommate, a 42-year-old Laurel woman “about toilet paper.” According to a police report, the man claimed that he was outside “by his BBQ” grill while the woman was yelling at him. The man told police “he removed his hearing aid so that he didn’t have to hear [the roommate] yell at him, which made her mad and caused her to punch him in the back of the head.” The woman denied punching her roommate in the head and claimed he was drunk. The woman told police that the man “constantly yells during the night and complains about things moving around in the common kitchen area.” According to a police report, the man “appeared to be under the influence of alcohol” at the time, and told police he only wanted to incident documented. Both parties were “advised to stay away from each other for the night.” The woman told police she was “going out with her boyfriend for the night.” About a half hour later, police were called back to the residence on Peconic Bay Blvd. by the man, to report that his roommate “moved the pots and pans that he had in the common kitchen area” at the residence. At that point, the woman “showed [her roommate] where the pots and pans were, before leaving with her boyfriend.
May 3 – Just before noon, police responded to a chuch on Factory Ave. in Mattituck, only to learn that a parishioner had “accidentally called 911 during [a] church service.”
All individuals named in police reports are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. Charges may be reduced, dismissed or result in an acquittal.
