Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney credited quick thinking cops with preventing what could have been a dangerous and deadly situation.
“Thanks to the great work of Suffolk County Police Officers, these Molotov cocktails were discovered and neutralized before anyone could be hurt,” Tierney said. “This alleged conduct will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, and my office will be working with our law enforcement partners to make sure that individuals who seek to endanger our citizens are caught and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
The arrests unfolded when Third Precinct officers spotted a 2008 Honda Accord being driven erratically on Lexington Avenue near Calebs Path and conducted a traffic stop.
While approaching the vehicle, officers observed two glass bottles filled with gasoline with gasoline-soaked rags that were visible from the tops inside the passenger compartment, devices commonly known as Molotov cocktails.
Emergency Service officers were called to the scene and safely disarmed the improvised incendiary devices, police said.
Following the stop, detectives from the Third Squad arrested Lorenzo Alvarado-Navarrete, 18, of 1536 Gardiner Drive in Bay Shore; Elvis Romero-Martinez, 20, of 327 Whipple St. in Brentwood; and Albert Yanes-Moran, 20, of 24 Perry St. in Brentwood.
All three were charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, a Class D felony.Police said Romero-Martinez, who was driving the Honda, was also issued multiple traffic summonses.
An investigation by Third Squad detectives, along with members of the Arson Squad and Criminal Intelligence Section, determined the incident was not related to terrorism, authorities said.
The three suspects were held overnight at the Third Precinct.