Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman criticized New York’s bail law Tuesday after county officials said a man charged in connection with multiple arson cases across Nassau County was released without bail and later taken into custody in cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Blakeman was joined in Bethpage by Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder and Chief Fire Marshal Michael Uttaro outside the Embassy Diner on Hempstead Turnpike in Bethpage, where officials discussed the arrest and raised public safety concerns.
County officials said the suspect, Elder Lopez Avalos, described by officials as an undocumented migrant from Guatemala, was charged with 10 felony counts of arson connected to separate incidents across the county. Officials said he was released following arraignment because the charges were not considered bail eligible under current state law.
“It doesn't make sense,” County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said. “It handcuffs law enforcement, preventing us from doing our jobs which is to keep the residents in Nassau County safe.”
During the briefing, Blakeman criticized Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state’s bail law, arguing that the suspect should not have been released given the seriousness of the allegations.
“Governor Hochul believes any individual who commits these crimes must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Gordon Tepper, Long Island Press Secretary for Governor Kathy Hochul said to Herald. “Law enforcement should use every tool at their disposal to hold individuals like this accountable for their actions.”
Blakeman also defended Nassau County’s cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“I certainly would restrict law enforcement from working with our federal agents, as a matter of fact, I would encourage it,” said Blakeman, the Republican candidate running for governor against Hochul. “Because we cooperate with ICE, we have a measure of control over what they do, local control.”
According to Ryder, Nassau County police, the Arson/Bomb Squad and fire marshals had been conducting surveillance following previous fire incidents when four vehicles were set on fire in Freeport during the early morning hours of May 10.
Authorities said the suspect was apprehended shortly afterward and charged with multiple counts of arson, criminal mischief and reckless endangerment, along with additional incidents involving brush and dumpster fires.
“When you put volunteer firefighters and the residents of Nassau County in jeopardy,” Uttaro said, “that should be something alone that should keep you behind bars, so you're not released back out into the street to do more of these actions that could be more detrimental.”
Officials said Nassau County later coordinated with ICE, and county officers participating in the federal 287(g) program, which grants local law enforcement agencies certain immigration enforcement authorities, took the suspect back into custody after ICE issued a detainer on Tuesday morning.
“We are out there, if you commit a crime in Nassau County, and you get arrested, and the system can't hold you,” Ryder said, “then we will turn you over to ICE, as we're required to.”
Investigators said the suspect allegedly used ripped pieces of cloth inserted into vehicle gas tanks as makeshift fuses to ignite the fires. Officials estimated the incidents caused more than $1 million in property damage. The county will continue their prosecution against Lopez Avalos.
