Crime & Safety

Crimes Nearby: St. James Robber Nabbed Through Bloody DNA, Police Say

The following arrest information was supplied by the Suffolk County Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.

Smitthown
• Blood left at the scene of an armed robbery at a St. James liquor store last October led to the recent arrest of a St. James man.
   
Suffolk County police said Daniel Spector entered Liquorium Wine and Liquors on North Country Road in St. James with a rifle at roughly 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 28, 2012 and attempted to rob the store. An employee, who thought the gun was fake, hit Spector over the head with a bottle. The blow caused Spector to drop the rifle and flee.

“The employee was a hero,” said Fourth Precinct Detective Sgt. James Murphy. “I wouldn’t suggest doing it. The employee didn’t get hurt, but the bad guy did.”
Through DNA tests run from blood left at the scene, police were able to identify Spector, who, because of prior crimes, was registered as part of a national database. Police began surveillance of his St. James home and arrested Spector on Friday.

He has been charged with first-degree robbery, a felony. He was also a charged with third-degree robbery, a felony, for allegedly stealing clothing from the Smith Haven Mall on May 6 and fleeing security. Police said Spector sped away in a car, knocking two people over.

Three Village
• Colleen Kendrick, 30, of Lake Grove, was arrested May 21 in connection with a May 1 incident at Kohl's in East Setauket. She is charged with third-degree burglary, a felony, after she allegedly stole merchandise. Police said Kendrick had previously signed a trespass agreement stating she is not allowed on the premises at any Kohl's locations. Police reports did not specify what kind of merchandise was stolen, or why Kendrick had previously signed a trespass agreement with the department store. According to court records she also faces misdemeanor charges of third-degree forgery, fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property and petty larceny, and is due back in court in July.

Commack
• Brian Ahrens, 24, of Smithtown, was arrested in Commack on a charge of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, a felony, on May 24. Police said they suspect Ahrens intended to sell the drug based on the amount in his possession. Police arrested Ahrens at the King Kullen shopping center at 89 Veterans Memorial Hwy.


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