Cops: Safe stolen from American Legion Hall

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Thousands of dollars intended to help veterans and children was stolen from the East Meadow American Legion Hall Post 1082, on Bellmore Road, last week.

The money, which American Legion member John Flower estimated was “just short of $7,000,” was packed in envelopes inside a 90-pound locked safe. The safe was stolen by at least one subject, possibly two, between 10:30 p.m. on Oct. 6 and 7:30 the next morning, after the thief or thieves broke in through the hall’s back window, according to Nassau County police.

Flower said that Legion Commander Larry Fitzsimmons was bartending on the night of Oct. 6, and that he closed the hall at around 10 p.m. “He said he knows he locked everything up,” Flower added.

When the cleaner arrived the following morning and found the back window and front door open, she called Flower, who notified police. A police spokesman said that the robbery was still under investigation as the Herald went to press on Tuesday.

The money, accumulated through various fundraisers throughout the year, was not in a bank, Flower explained, because the legion was planning to use it soon to buy Thanksgiving dinners for veterans, and Toys for Tots for children. “We got complacent,” he said. “Put it that way.”

The building has no security cameras, but Flower said they plan to install them in the near future.

In the wake of the robbery, he said, people have generously made donations to the post. “People are very, very nice,” Flower said. “They’re coming out of the woodwork.”