By:Jonann Brady
Malverne Police Chief Glen Jacobsen said that Moughal and a nearby neighbor had been involved in minor disputes for the past year or so. "[The disputes] were minor violations like noise and exterior house lights," said Jacobsen.
The tense standoff began at around 1 a.m. on May 7, when Malverne police responded to a neighbor's complaint of a barking dog at Moughal's 100 Linmouth Rd. home. There they issued a summons to Moughal, 44.
About an hour later, Malverne police returned to the house after neighbors reported hearing gunshots in the same area. Sgt. John Aresta and Officer Anthony Castellano staked out the home, and fifteen minutes later, they saw Moughal leave the house armed with a handgun, walk to his front year and fire a number of shots.
The officers approached Moughal and ordered him to drop the weapon, but he refused, and retreated back inside his home and would not come out. "It's a dangerous situation because he can see us, but we can't see him," said Jacobsen.
The officers took cover behind bushes and trees and called for back up. Minutes later, the quiet block was filled with emergency vehicles from the Fifth Precinct, the Bureau of Special Operations, the Hostage Negotiation Team, the Crime Scene Unit and the Lynbrook Police Department.
Neighbors on either side of Moughal were evacuated to a safe location, and the nearby Our Lady of Lourdes church parking lot served as the command post for police operations. Hostage negotiators used a loudspeaker to convince Moughal to pick up his phone and speak to them. Several hours later, at 5:30 a.m., Moughal surrendered to police without further incident.
Though Jacobsen could not comment specifically on Moughal's state of mind, he said that when Moughal eventually surrendered, he "wasn't acting extremely angry or agitated" and did not resist arrest.
"Fortunately, there were no injuries to police or civilians, and that's paramount," said Jacobsen. "The arrest went by the book."
The bizarre incident shook up many neighbors, several of whom declined to comment. One woman who lives on Linmouth, Marie Schuler, said that even though emergency vehicles were parked in her driveway for several hours, she missed the excitement. "I slept right through it," she said.
Jacobsen added that Rev. Donald Baier of Our Lady of Lourdes, which is within sight of Moughal's home, was extremely helpful, putting into place a plan to cancel church service and school, which turned out to be unnecessary.
After the arrest, Malverne police recovered a number of loaded handguns, a loaded shotgun, ammunition and several knives at Moughal's home. Though Moughal apparently had a license for the firearms, Jacobsen said, "What he's doing with all these weapons and ammunition, we don't know."
Moughal was arrested and charged with first-degree reckless endangerment, fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon and prohibited use of a dangerous weapon. He was arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Saturday, May 8.
