Two Busts and a DWI: Busy Holiday Week for the Scarsdale Police

Drinking, drugs and disputes figured prominently in the police blotter in the week leading up to Christmas: Passed Out at the Wheel: At midnight on 12/20 Old Lyme Road residents called police about a suspicious car parked in front of their home with the headlights on. Police found the car running with the keys in the ignition and the driver in the front seat. They knocked on the car window to wake up the owner but couldn't rouse him so they opened the car door. They woke the driver who appeared to be drunk. He identified himself as Ronald Prunesti of Danbury, CT and admitted to being too drunk to drive. He was arrested for DWI and taken to headquarters where he admitted to drinking vodka, beer and shots of tequila at a bar in Larchmont and was found to have a BAC of .10%. At 4:45 he was released on $250 bail and taken home in a taxi. His car was impounded.

Busted and Robbed? Police received a rather bizarre report on the afternoon of 12/21 from a boy who was being robbed of a bag of marijuana at knifepoint at the Heathcote School. While police were en route to the scene they received radio descriptions of the suspects and their locations. Police found one of the suspects at the end of Fayette Road, stopped and frisked him but found no knife. He identified himself as Gus and said he was waiting for a cab to take him home. Shortly thereafter, another officer found the second suspect who also admitted that he had been the caller. He said that he and Gus were at the school with the bag of marijuana when Gus got upset, pulled a knife on him and grabbed the marijuana out of his hands. According to the second suspect, the bag belonged to Gus. Police brought Gus over to be identified by the suspect who changed his story numerous times, first stating that Gus was not the person who robbed him and then asserting that he and Gus were friends and that earlier in the afternoon Gus had taken the marijuana from the suspect's room and they had walked to a store to buy rolling papers. They then went to the Heathcote Baseball Field where they rolled two joints. Gus became agitated over the way the joints were rolled and began an argument. After they smoked two joints in the woods the suspect wanted to go home and Gus got angrier. Gus followed him onto Innes Road and the victim said Gus had a knife and threatened the victim to give him the bag of pot "or he would be on the floor." At this point the suspect gave Gus the bag and Gus took off.

Police questioned Gus who at first denied having any dealings with the victim but then showed police the bench where the two of them were smoking. Police found a dollar covered with marijuana and Gus admitted that they used the dollar to roll the joints. Police asked Gus for the marijuana and he said he did not have it. Then they said that drug dogs would come search for it and Gus led them to the stash which was buried under a rock along the fence of the field. Gus admitted to smoking marijuana with the victim in the woods, grabbing the marijuana "as a joke" and placing it under a rock.

The victim admitted to bringing the bag of marijuana to the field, and said that Gus used physical force to steal the bag of marijuana. He also admitted to lying to police as he was scared he would be found to own the pot. He is underage and was arrested for unlawful possession.

Gus' complete name is not included here because he is 19 years old. He was arrested, searched and placed in a holding cell. He was issued a temporary order of protection for the victim and arraigned before Judge Katz at 10:30 pm. She set bail at $500 which was posted by his father. He was released and given a court date of January 8.

Arrest: An Edgewood man got more than he bargained for when police pulled him over on Fox Meadow Road on Sunday afternoon 12/16/13 after he crossed the center line while driving north and got too close to a car traveling south. After they stopped him, police found that the car smelled like marijuana and the defendant turned over a glass pipe and a grinder containing marijuana. The man was removed from the car and police conducted a search and found a small plastic bag with marijuana in the man's pocket. In the trunk of the car they found a Dior handbag containing two gold necklaces.

After the arrest, the man, who was identified as Jonathan Magsambol age 24 of Johnson Road, was brought to police headquarters and two driver's licenses were found in the glove box of the car, one belonging to a New Rochelle woman. They contacted the woman who said that in April 2012 someone had entered the trunk of her car and stolen her wallet which contained her license. However, the handbag and gold chains did not belong to her.

The second license was issued in Indiana. Police checked with the Indiana State Police and determined that the license was fake. Police checked the handbag but could find no evidence of who owned it.

Magsambol admitted to the traffic violation, possession of marijuana and the forged license but denied any knowledge of the handbag or gold necklaces. He was brought before Judge Galloway at Scarsdale Village Court and bail was set at $20,000. As he was unable to post bail he was sent to Westchester County Jail.

Accident: An elderly Hartsdale couple was hit by a car when they were crossing North Center Avenue in the crosswalk at 5 pm on Saturday, December 21 at 5:00 P.M. The car was a 2013 Volkswagen driven by a 52-year-old Scarsdale woman. A 14-year-old boy was also in the car and neither he nor the driver were injured. However, the female pedestrian, age 88 and her husband, age 94, both sustained injuries and were transported by Greenburgh EMS to the Westchester County Medical Center. The woman was admitted with serious injuries and her husband was treated and released. The operator of the Volkswagen was issued a summons failing to yield right of way to a pedestrian in the crosswalk.

Graffiti: An excavator who was doing work on Dell Road reported that vandals had spray painted the excavating equipment at the building site. Gerardo Masullo of New City estimated that the damage would cost $6,000 to repair. The incident occurred sometime between the evening of 12/13 and the morning of 12/16/13.

Identity Theft: The owner of Paris Interiors on East Parkway in Scarsdale reported that someone withdrew $3,560 in funds from her business account using forged checks. On 12/16 a man deposited two checks, one for $1,200 and another for $1,500 at an ATM at a Chase Bank in L.I.C. and immediately made two withdrawals for $500 each. Later that day, two debit account purchases for $995 and $700 were made at a Walmart in L.I.C. A third check for $860 was deducted from the business owner's account. Though the woman closed the account, as of the date of the report, the bank did not reimburse her for the stolen funds.

Cars Entered Overnight: $100 in cash was stolen from the center console of a Lexus parked at a Lyons Road home overnight on 12/18 – 12/19. On the morning of the 19th, the owner found papers scattered around the car and it appeared that someone had entered it overnight and stolen two $50 bills she kept in the console. A car parked in a neighboring driveway was also entered that night. Though the car was tossed there was no damage and nothing was stolen.

Found Wallet: A woman turned over a wallet she found near the courthouse in White Plains on 12/19. The wallet contained $37 in cash and two credit cards. Police attempted to contact the wallet's owner but were unable to reach her and placed the wallet in a locker.

Stolen Fedex: An Oak Lane woman reported that a package was taken from the front of her house on the afternoon of 12/19. The babysitter saw the package at the door at 3:15 when she went out but when she returned it was gone. It contained a hairdryer and a make-up gift set together valued at $224.

Disputes: A Sprague Road woman called police at 10 pm on December 16 to say that she was having a fight with her husband and to request assistance. When police arrived the sparring couple said they were having a verbal dispute and that it was now resolved. However, it was agreed that the wife should leave the premises.

-At 5:30 pm on 12/19 a Rural Drive woman called to ask police to help resolve an issue she was having with her mother. Police spoke to all parties and helped mediate the conflict.

-Police received a call about a fight in process between a couple on Fox Meadow Road at 1:35 am on 12/21. Police found the pair at the Scarsdale Train Station and they said they had a fight that night. The woman said she no longer wished to speak to the man and he left.

-At 9:52 am on 12/21 a Hartsdale Avenue man said that as he was walking on East Parkway a Port Chester man almost ran into him with his car. The two exchanged "unpleasant words." They then apologized and left the scene.

-Ike Okoli of Lockwood Road called police at 10 pm on 12/22 to say that a neighbor had thrown a rock through the window of his garage. Police saw no signs that the garage had been hit with a rock. Two boys were in the neighboring yard playing baseball. Okoli's mother returned and said that no assistance was needed.

No Signs: At 6:13 am on 12/17 police found a sign for G-Tec kids posted on the Heathcote Bypass. The sign was removed and the company was issued a summons.

Locked In: A 2-year-old locked herself inside a bathroom at a home on Tory Lane on the afternoon of 12/17. The fire department was called and they were able to unlock the door.

Whose Car Is It? A Forest Lane man called police at 3:30 pm on 12/17 when he found a car that he did not recognize parked across his driveway. Police found the car blocking the man's garage and surmised that it had skidded into the driveway. Shortly thereafter the owner of the car arrived and said that he called a tow truck to remove the car from the driveway.

A resident from Boulevard called police at 4:30 pm on 12/17 to say that a postal truck had broken down and was blocking their driveway. Police arrived and found that the truck was not blocking the driveway and another postal vehicle arrived to jump the engine of the stuck truck.

Noise: Police received a call at 10:30 pm on 12/21 about loud music coming from a home on Park Road. They went to the house and the residents agreed to turn down the music.

Rushing Water: At 5 pm on 12/22 police received a call about water rushing out of an unoccupied house on Bradley Road. The house was scheduled to be torn down due to its condition. The Fire Department was able to get into the house and turn off the water main.

On 12/16 a Clarence Road man turned over a marine emergency flare kit to the police saying he had no need for it.

Unregistered driver: Police stopped Richardo Rivera, age 38 of Yonkers, on the afternoon of 12/18 when their scanner revealed that the car he was driving at the intersection of Church Lane and Crane Road had a suspended registration. The registration was suspended due to lack of insurance. Police removed the license plates from the car and towed the car to Rivera's home. Rivera was given summons for driving an uninspected and uninsured vehicle.

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