Restaurant owner charged with sex abuse

A Bellmore resident was arrested and charged in a sexual abuse case that allegedly occurred on June 17 in Westbury. According to Nassau County Police, Bellmore resident Memet Arslan, 32, who owns Mediterranean Kebab Restaurant in Westbury, was locking up his restaurant after all the cooks and servers had left. The defendant locked the doors to the restaurant knowing that there was still a 16-year-old girl inside.

Police allege that Arslan grabbed the victim and began to forcibly touch her without consent. Police say the victim pushed away from Arslan and fled the restaurant.

Arslan was arrested and charged with forcible touching, endangering the welfare of a child and sexual abuse in the third degree. Detectives ask anyone with knowledge of a similar incident to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS or Third Squad detectives at (516) 573-6353.

Arslan's lawyer, John Lawrence, said that despite the allegations, he believes his client is innocent. "He was really taken back by these allegations and actually shocked," Lawrence said of Arslan's initial reaction. Arslan made bail and is set to reappear in court on Thursday.

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