Mayor: Riverhead K-9 Unit Helps Nab Grand Larceny Suspect in East Hampton

A Riverhead Town Police K-9 unit was a hero recently as he helped to nab a grand larceny suspect in the Village of East Hampton.

According to East Hampton Village Mayor, Paul F. Rickenbach, Jr., Riverhead Police Officer John R. Doscinski and his K-9 police companion, Vaki, were called into action on Nov. 21, when an East Hampton Village resident heard something suspicious outside his home and confronted an individual who was attempting to enter multiple vehicles; he found him sitting in his car.

After a brief scuffle, where he tried to subdue the suspect, the man escaped and the resident went back inside his home and notified local police. Due to the immediacy of the situation, a Suffolk County helicopter and the Riverhead Town Police K-9 unit were called to assist, the mayor said.

Rickenbach added that Officer Doscinski and K-9 Vaki tracked the fleeing suspect for nearly a mile before forcing the suspect out of hiding behind a vacant house. 

According to East Hampton Village Police, James Sbardella, 33, was located on Talmage Lane and charged with burglary in the second degree, no forced entry, a felony; police said he was also found to be in possession of a small amount of marijuana.

“Working in conjunction with Suffolk County Police and Riverhead Town Police K-9 unit, we were able to apprehend the suspect,” who Rickenbach said was suspected of grand larceny and burglary.

Rickenbach commended Doscinski’s handling of Vaki, a five-and-a-half-year-old German Shepherd from Hungary, and the dog’s ability to track the suspect’s scent as the primary reason for making the quick arrest. 

“It’s one of those times, we can chalk one up for the good guys,” he said.Officer Doscinski has been with the Riverhead Police Department for 24 years, 19 of which hacve been with the K-9 unit.

The mayor expressed his appreciation in a letter to Riverhead Supervisor Sean Walter, on behalf of the Village Trustees and residents for the assist. In recognizing Officer Doscinski’s performance with K-9 Vaki, Rickenbach wrote, “The manner in which they executed their duties and assisted our Village Police Department are commendable.”

East Hampton Village Police Chief Gerard Larsen, Jr. also wrote a letter to his Riverhead Police Chief David J. Hegermiller, to express his appreciation for “the outstanding job by Police Officer Doscinski and his dog in apprehending the grand larceny suspect.”

“This was a great job by Officer Doscinski and Vocky to assist our neighbors to the east,” said Hegermiller. “This is the way it is supposed to work — cooperating with nearby municipalities to keep our neighborhoods safe.”

Walter praised the efforts of Officer Doscinski and the K-9 unit. “I am proud that they were able to play a key role in the arrest of this grand larceny suspect. Intermunicipal cooperation is the right thing to do,” he said. “You never know when we may need the help.”

Walter, as the police commissioner of the Riverhead Police Department, will be presenting a citation to Police Officer Doscinski and K-9 Police Vocky at the January 7 town board meeting at 2 p.m.