By Jeff Lipton
A 20-year-old contractor and a 17-year-old Lawrence High School student allegedly "went on a rampage" at the Woodmere Club when they commandeered golf carts and tore up the golf course early Sunday morning, detectives said.
The suspects, identified by police as Vincent Curra, 20, of Maiden Lane in Inwood, and Oliver Castillo, 17, of Central Avenue in Lawrence, also are accused of breaking into a concession stand at the club, which is located on Meadow Drive in Woodmere, and stealing beer, food and a small television set, investigators said.
They were captured after workers at the club arrived and trapped the suspects on the golf club grounds, holding them there until police arrived, officials said.
Police said the incident began at about 3 A.M. on Sunday, August 27, when the suspects entered through the unlocked gates of the club. Police said the two suspects apparently had been drinking beer and hanging out in the club's parking lot when they decided to drive their vehicle onto club grounds.
Detectives said the suspects broke into the garage storing the golf carts. Each hopped into a golf cart and started the cart, authorities said. One of the carts had a key in the ignition, the other was hot-wired to get it started, said Detective James Knoblach of the Fourth Squad. They drove the carts around the greens, causing an estimated $2,000 in damages to the golf course and carts, police said. Club officials told police that one of the carts sustained damage to its undercarraige during the incident.
"They went on a rampage and one thing led to another," Detective Knoblach said. "They drove it throughout the course, tearing up the turf."
At that point, they broke into the half-way house, a concession stand located at about the ninth hole, and filled up two bags with beer and snack items, police said. They also grabbed a hand-held television set, police said. "They then got back into the golf carts and continued to drive around," Detective Knoblach said.
"They continued to drive around, drinking beer and having a good old time," the detective added.
Golf course workers then arrived just before 5 A.M., startling the suspects and forcing them to hide in the adjoining yards, police said. They hid for about an hour when they decided to escape from the golf club. But they were prevented from doing so by quick-thinking workers who used a Woodmere Club vehicle to box in their getaway car, said Detective Knoblach. Police were called and arrested the suspects on charges of burglary in the third degree and two counts of criminal mischief in the third degree, police said. They were arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Monday and were released to the Probation Department, which will monitor them under a program of intensive supervision, according to the Nassau County District Attorney's Office.
Detective Knoblach described the motive for the rampage as "foolishness."
"Probably alcohol had some play in it," the detective said. "They know they did wrong and they admitted it. Very rarely do we get this type of an incident. It was just an opportunity that had gone bad for these kids. It's just something that happened. I don't think that it was something they deliberately went out to do. It was just the beer and being at the wrong spot at the wrong time."
Mr. Curra did not return phone calls for comment and no one answered the door bell at the Lawrence Woods Co-op, where the 17-year-old resides.
This is the second time this month that the Five Towns was the target of major vandalism. On the weekend of August 12, vandals knocked over 26 tombstones in the cemetery operated by Trinity-St. John's Episcopal Church in Hewlett. The vandal or vandals are still being sought in that case. Police said they do not believe the two incidents are related.
