Crimes Nearby: Cops Offer $5K in Bridgehampton Hate Crime Graffiti Case

The following information was supplied by the East End police departments. A criminal charge is only an accusation and does not indicate guilt.

Southampton  

• An East Hampton woman reported on June 24 that while in Bridgehampton she received a call from a blocked number during which the caller said he had kidnapped her brother would kill him unless she sends $1,300 via Western Union to a Julian Rodriguez in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Police called the brother, who then arrived to show he was not in fact kidnapped, according to the incident report.

• A Southampton woman told police June 26 that she received a call stating that her brother was injured and needed help. The caller asked for $2,500 before any more information would be provided and said the brother would most likely die if the money was not sent. "The complainant contacted her brother and he was fine and no money was given," the incident reported stated. The caller asked that the money be brought to Whitmore's, which police believe referred to a business in East Hampton.

• Police are trying to find who spray-painted swastikas and racial slurs June 8 at the site of a house under construction on the Bridge golf course in Noyac, and now a cash reward of up to $5,000 has been put on the table for information leading to an arrest.

Southampton Town police said in an incident report that a swastika and a "possible gang affiliation symbol" that reads "REZ Mobb" were spray-painted on a utility trailer, and a swastika and Star of David were painted inside the residence.

According to the incident report, the Bridge's club house manager called town police that night to report that sometime since 1 p.m. someone on an ATV or dirt bike went onto a wooded area south of the club house and sprayed graffiti using black and yellow paint.

Because of the nature of the graffiti the Suffolk County Police Hate Crime Unit was called in. Suffolk County Crime Stoppers is asking anyone with information to anonymously call 1-800-220-TIPS.

• A Riverhead man briefly escaped custody Friday morning before he was captured again, resulting in an assault charge, according to police.

Southampton Village police said 33-year-old Randy W. Salmons was driving erratically east on Hill Street in a 2007 Chevrolet, passing vehicles on the left. When he was stopped on Windmill Lane, he told an officer his name was David Benowitz, police said. A computer check showed his license had been revoked four times since 2008 for alcohol-related reasons, according to police, who added that he was also on probation.

After being placed under arrest and put in the rear of a police cruiser, Salmons escaped through a window and ran, police said. He was chased down and subdued with pepper spray, and the arresting officer's hand was injured during the incident, according to police.

Salmons was charged with second-degree assault, a felony, and second-degree aggravated unlicensed operations, false personation, resisting arrest, and third-degree escape, all misdemeanors.  

Salmons was arraigned and remanded to the Suffolk County Jail in lieu of $3,000 bail. His vehicle was impounded, police said.

• A woman picked up for shoplifting Friday at a Southampton Village grocery store was slapped with additional charges that date back months for other crimes, according to police.

Southampton Village police said store security at Waldbaum's on Jagger Lane called to report they had a shoplifter in custody. Officers arrived to find Linda L. Curry, 69, of Southampton, with items she hadn't paid for and she was arrested at 12:20 p.m., authorities said.

Curry was charged with petty larceny and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, both misdemeanors.

Police also found there was an outstanding bench warrant for Curry's arrest from March 3 for issuing a bad check, a misdemeanor, and she was further charged with fourth-degree grand larceny, a felony, in connection with a shoplifting investigation dating back to October 2012. Police said she stole items from one of the Flying Point surf apparel stores on Main Street in the village.

North Fork

• A Riverhead woman is facing a felony charge after Southold Town police said she drove drunk on Route 48 in Mattituck Saturday. Jamie L. Walsh, 29, was arrested and charged with aggravated driving while intoxicated at 10:16 p.m.

East Hampton 

• Scot W. Edler, 34, of Orangeburg, NY, was arrested on a felony driving while intoxicated charge on July 1 in Amagansett. Police said they saw him going 50 mph in a 30 mph zone on Main Street, near Miankoma Lane, at about 12:50 a.m. Before police could activate their lights and sirens, Elder pulled over to the right shoulder without signaling. He appeared drunk and performed poorly on sobriety tests, police said. After he was placed under arrest, police discovered he was previously convicted of a DWI in Clarke's Town Court in New York. His vehicle was impounded. His arraignment information was not immediately available.

• An Amagansett business owner reported $22,700 stolen from his house while he was sleeping on the night of June 23 and the morning of June 24. He woke up around 4:30 a.m. and noticed the bags the money were in were missing from his bedroom. Detectives are investigating.