Crime & Safety

Crime Nearby: School Employees Behaving Badly

Notable arrests and convictions around Long Island.

Employees at three Long Island school districts were led before the cameras in cuffs last week after being arrested for inappropriate incidents involving students. 

The most serious of the charges involved Freeport middle school principal John O'Mard, 44, of Freeport, who allegedly took part in sexual acts with a 16-year-old boy, Nassau County Police said. It is believed that O'Mard, who had a criminal record, also used fake fingerprints to land his current job. 

Westhampton Beach middle school teacher Thomas Sheppard, 27, of Speonk, was accused of hiding a video camera in the girls locker room, New York State Police said.

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Wyandanch High School assistant principal Craig Cohen, 47, of Northport, was charged with sexting students and staff, Suffolk County Police said. Police claim Cohen sent several inappropriate texts from his cell phone to students and faculty members between February and March.

Nassau Prostitution Crackdown

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Nassau Police got tough on prostitution last week, making publicized arrests in Hicksville, Merrick, Oceanside, Williston Park and Woodbury.

Hua Yang, 51, of Flushing, was arrested for unauthorized practice and offered to engage in a sexual act at an Oceanside acupuncturist Friday, police said. 

Diana Espinal, 40, of Manhattan, allegedly offered to perform a sexual act on an undercover detective at the Best Western Motel in Woodbury Thursday, police said. 

Precious Griffin, 29, of Manhattan, was charged at the Days Inn Motel in Hicksville after offering to perform sexual acts on a cop for money Thursday, police said.

Clarissa Mitchell, 29, of East Hartford, Conn., offered to perform a sexual act for money on an undercover detective at the Gateway Inn in Merrick Thursday, police said. 

Jin Yun Sun, 52, and Qian Zhang, 49, both of Queens, were arrested at a Williston Park spa Wednesday for performing unlicensed messages on undercover detectives and allegedly offering to perform a sexual act, police said.

Wrong Way Driver Crashes

New York State Police arrested a wrong-way driver on the Southern State Parkway in Massapequa early Saturday. Leston Douglas, 25, of Lindenhurst, allegedly struck a Toyota and left the scene of the accident. Police charged him with DWI, Leaving the Scene of an Accident, Driving the Wrong Way, and Unlicensed Operation.

Fake FBI Agent Busted

A man flashing an FBI badge pulled over a car in East Meadow Saturday, but Nassau County Police arrived a short time later and arrested Gagandeep Singh, 19, of Hicksville, for criminal impersonation. Singh also had two New York drivers licenses on him.

Chiropractor Arrested for Forcible Touching

A Valley Stream chiropractor was arrested Sunday after he allegedly used a massaging device to touch a female victim's genital area during a chiropractic exam, Nassau Police said. Douglas Dukofsky, 43, of Merrick, was conducting an examination on a 21-year-old woman when the "forcible touching" incident occurred.


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