Locals Sound Off On DA's Anti-Gang Unit
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Suffolk District Attorney Tim Sini announced last week his office’s new anti-gang initiative focused solely on investigating and prosecuting gang members across Long Island. Photo/Office of Suffolk DA Tim Sini
By Janee Law
jlaw@longislandergroup.com
Suffolk District Attorney Tim Sini announced last week the formation of a gang unit within his office’s Enhanced Prosecution Bureau that will focus solely on investigating and prosecuting gang members across Long Island.
The move has locals talking, with many in favor of the initiative. Some, however, are calling for more as the town, and Long Island as a whole, recover from instances of gang-initiated violence over the past two years.
During a press conference announcing his new initiative, Sini vowed that the newly-created unit will “be laser-focused on prosecuting gang members, partnering with every single law enforcement agency on Long Island and helping to lead the fight against MS-13 and other violent street gangs here in Suffolk.”
Sini, who was elected to the DA post last November, listed 29 federal, state or local agencies his office is partnering with, including the village police departments of Asharoken, Huntington Bay, Lloyd Harbor and Northport.
The plan is to have an assistant district attorney be on-call 24 hours a day to assist and support law enforcement officers on arrests of gang members, or investigations of gang-related crimes.
ADAs and detective investigators in the unit will also receive extensive internal and external training by gang experts so they are in the loop on gang-related intelligence.
Sini’s unit, along with SCPD, plan to host recurring bi-weekly meetings with representatives of each of the participating agencies. The meetings, which began last week, will focus on arrests, prosecutions, imprisonments and post-release supervision of gang members.
The collaboration between the Suffolk DA’s office and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York will allow for prosecution of suspected gang members under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, an effective tool used to dismantle gangs, officials said.
This initiative was prompted by the increase in gang activity across the Long Island, including within the Town of Huntington.
SCPD and Sini’s office made strides against gang activity back in December with the arrests of five suspected MS-13 members who were allegedly plotting to kill a Brentwood teen.
However, in the Huntington township, residents are still reeling from a pair of August 2016 killings that have left residents looking for answers.
First, the body of 18-year-old Estiven Abrego Gomez was found with “significant lacerations” in a Greenlawn park on Aug. 20, 2016.
Sini has since told Long Islander News that killing was gang related.
Seven days later, 18-year-old Antoine Butts-Miller was shot and killed in Huntington Station. Police have not officially confirmed or denied whether that killing was gang related.
Darryl St. George, former president of the Greenlawn Civic Association and a teacher at Northport High School, said Albrego’s murder “scared a lot of people and upset a lot of people.”
St. George said Second Precinct officials have assured community members the incident would be addressed and not ignored, but residents still feel uneasy.
“I’m confident our leadership in the Second Precinct is doing everything in their power to stop these types of tragedies from happening again,” he added. But, “We want to make sure these things don’t happen again.”
St.George commended Sini’s anti-gang initiative, adding that it’s important to be proactive in order to prevent young people from joining up with gangs in the first place.
Lifelong Huntington Station resident Jim McGoldrick is similarly on board with Sini’s initiative, but still concerns persist, he said.
“Are we going to use these resources here in Huntington where they are also needed, or in other townships?” McGoldrick said. “We’re short changed as it is when it comes to what we’re receiving back for our dollar.”
Huntington Supervisor Chad Lupinacci said gang activity in the township is “a serious concern.”
“We need to continue working along with our county officials, our police and our federal officials so that all levels of government are working together to end gang activity in the area and across Long Island,” Lupinacci said.
The supervisor, who assumed the position this past January, added that Sini’s initiative is a great step toward reducing gang recruitment — not only for MS-13, but other gangs believed to be active in the township, as Sini has previously told Long Islander News.
Lupinacci added, “It’s about putting in more resources and working along with the federal government so we can weed out the gang members who do a lot of harm to the community.”
Tracey Edwards, local NCAACP president, and former town councilwoman, said cooperation between the DA’s office, law enforcement agencies and sheriff’s department is “critical.”
“We are glad to see this renewed effort,” Edwards said. “Any enhancements to enforcement, prevention, and suppression of gangs are welcome.”
June Margolin, president of community advocacy group Huntington Matters, called Sini’s initiative overdue.
“It’s going to be the glue in all those cracks that these gang members and criminals have been able to slip through all these years,” Margolin said. “It’s these cracks that have allowed gangs to flourish here on Long Island.”
Margolin said she hopes the initiative won’t focus solely on one gang, but all.
“There are a lot more gangs around here that are equally as violent in their own ways and equally as detrimental to the community, through drug dealing and thefts, and it all has to be addressed,” she added. “I’m extremely excited about this initiative.”
