By Mary Malloy
According to 4th Precinct Lt. Lawrence Feffer, a customer at the fast-food restaurant noticed a firearm in the waistband of Jo An Pointier Perdomo, 19, of Oceanside, and called 911. "The caller was familiar with guns, and felt that it may be a possible dangerous situation," Feffer said. Police arrived at about 10:25 p.m. and, according to detectives, spotted Perdomo in the restaurant and directed him outside.
As police were searching Perdomo, he managed to escape, according to Feffer. "He ran across the street and jumped into the waterway adjacent to the East Rockaway town dock on Dock Street," Feffer said. After several minutes of treading water, with a police helicopter searchlight trained on him, Perdomo complied with police officers' directives to get out of the water. "He was in there a while, and the water was cold," Feffer said. Officers searched Perdomo, but did not find a weapon.
Nassau County Police Underwater Search and Recovery Team Marine Bureau divers were called in to search the area. "We evaluated the information the police officers gave us," said Marine Bureau Officer Brian Frey. "We set up a search pattern based on this, and two divers went into the water ..." Within an hour, Frey said, the search was completed, and a loaded .22-caliber handgun was retrieved from the water. "It was the same gun," said Feffer. "It had a unique handle we could identify."
As word spread through the community, dozens of concerned parents and teens gathered at the boat basin. "My son and some other kids were eating in Wendy's with some friends when someone called the police," said a Bay Park resident named Susan, who declined to give her last name. "My son said they frisked another person who was with the guy, and while they were doing this, [Perdomo] ran across the road and just jumped into the water. My son said there was a lot of excitement, with the police and everyone else running after him."
Perdomo was transported to South Nassau Communities Hospital for treatment of possible hypothermia. After an investigation, he was arrested and charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He was arraigned on Sunday in First District Court in Hempstead.
Comments about this story? MMalloy@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 202.
