By: JOSEPH KELLARD
Kevin Mingo, 23, and Kwame Montague, 21, of Brooklyn and Caisy Frank, 23, of Central Islip were arrested after they allegedly broke into two cars at the New York Sports Club on Lincoln Avenue in Oceanside at 7:55 p.m. on Feb. 10.
A Nassau County Police Department helicopter was patrolling the Oceanside area when police received a call about the break-ins in the gym's parking lot. The three were allegedly in the process of stealing credit cards and personal items such as cell phones, wallet cash and clothing from both cars. Witnesses at the club described the suspects' vehicle as a 2000 Jeep that exited the parking lot just as police in patrol cars arrived.
The police pursued the suspects south on Long Beach Road until the three exited the vehicle and began to flee on foot. Shortly thereafter, two of the three were apprehended near Khol's department store on Long Beach Road, and the third suspect was captured nearby after the police helicopter operator using infrared equipment observed him lying prone beside a fence in the vicinity.
Police recovered partial proceeds from the break-ins from the suspects, as well as credit cards allegedly stolen in a similar larceny from a car at the New York Sports Club in Long Beach the day before.
The three men suspects in a number of other similar larcenies that have taken place at gyms in Oceanside, including the NYSC and Iron Man Gym on Lawson Boulevard, and surrounding towns. "They are suspected of 15 to 20 larcenies only in our patrol area," said Detective Andrew Sether of the Fourth Precinct. "That's not counting surrounding areas."
Police reported two other incidents at the New York Sports Club in Oceanside, the first on Dec. 16, when six cars reportedly had their windows knocked out, and the second on Jan. 18, when three cars were broken into and items were taken. But NYSC reports many more similar crimes at its Oceanside location.
"I think we had more than 10 of these crimes in Oceanside beginning in December," Susan Gerson, a spokeswoman for NYSC, told the Herald. "Our foremost concern is for the safety and comfort of our members, so obviously we are very pleased that [the suspects] have been caught and there will be no more incidents like this in the future."
Mingo, Montague and Frank were charged with fourth-degree grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, criminal mischief and petty larceny.
