More Arrests After Montauk 7-Eleven Brawl
A brawl at the Montauk 7-Eleven over the Memorial Day weekend has led to eight arrests, including two on felony charges of attempted assault with a weapon — a four-foot-long wooden two-by-four — with intent to cause serious injury.
Two groups of men began fighting at about 4:30 in the morning on May 28. A video of the melee, widely disseminated on social media, shows only a part of it, inside the store. It eventually spilled over into the parking lot.
Rick A. McFarland of Springs, 28, was both aggressor and victim, according to East Hampton Town police, who spoke with him after the brawl and charged him about an hour later with misdemeanor criminal mischief for damage done to “merchandise, shelving units, and merchandise stands,” which were knocked down and trampled inside the store. He was also charged with disorderly conduct and harassment, violations, for “throwing punches at numerous persons.”
Mr. McFarland became a victim, according to the charge, when, in the parking lot, Fernando Junior Mateo-Brito picked up the two-by-four and swung it, baseball-style, at his head. He missed, according to the report. Mr. Mateo-Brito, who is short of stature, admitted swinging at Mr. McFarland, according to court papers. He explained his actions by saying, “the black guy who attacked me was almost seven feet tall.”
Moments after he dropped the two-by-four, according to police, who studied videos shot from numerous cameras planted on the ceiling and exterior of the store, Mr. Mateo-Brito also became a target, when an acquaintance of Mr. McFarland’s, Kean M. Mabery, 35, picked up the two-by-four and swung it at Mr. Mateo-Brito’s skull. He too missed his mark. Mr. Mabery, a longtime East Hampton resident, now lives in Mastic.
For police, in the hours and days after the fight, it became a job of matching names to faces, a majority of which were familiar to them. After Mr. McFarland’s arrest, officers picked up Carlos J. Serra Bencosme, 25, of Montauk. He is facing the same charges as Mr. McFarland. Then Demaurys Delossantos of Amagansett, 41, was arrested after questioning, on charges of criminal mischief and disorderly conduct.
On May 30, police charged Courtney R. Gregg, 26, who lives in Springs at the same address as Mr. McFarland, with disorderly conduct. William McFarland of Hampton Bays, 36, Rick McFarland’s brother, was also arrested that day, charged with misdemeanor criminal mischief and disorderly conduct.
That night, police picked up both Mr. Mateo-Brito and his brother Marbin Mateo-Brito, 30, who live in the same house in Montauk. Marbin was charged with disorderly conduct, Fernando with felony attempted assault, misdemeanor criminal mischief, and misdemeanor menacing, and held overnight.
His brother, like all the others arrested up to then, was released with an appearance ticket. Fernando Mateo Brito was arraigned on May 31, and freed after his family posted $5,000 bail.
Then it was Mr. Mabery’s turn. Police contacted him last Thursday night at his Mastic residence and told him he was going to be arrested. He agreed to come to town police headquarters in Wainscott on Friday morning, where he was handcuffed and taken to Justice Court to face the same charges as Fernando Mateo-Brito, except for criminal mischief, indicating he was not involved in the damage to the store.
“I am very disappointed to see you again,” Justice Lisa R. Rana told him. Mr. Mabery has been before her several times on various criminal charges, though with only a single conviction, on a reduced misdemeanor charge. “Now, you’re facing a C felony,” she said.
She set bail of $2,000, which was posted by Mr. Mabery’s father, who had accompanied his son back to East Hampton for the arraignment.
Several of those charged have criminal records. William McFarland has twice served time in state prison, most recently after a 2011 conviction for selling narcotics and attempted assault, felonies. Released in 2015, he is still on parole. He is scheduled for arraignment here on July 6.
Mr. Mabery has been charged with a number of crimes in the past, including grand larceny and possession of stolen property, felonies, but had no charges pending until this incident.
Mr. Serra Bencosme, charged with drunken driving in Montauk in 2014, pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of driving with ability impaired and was sentenced to 200 hours’ community service. He will be arraigned on the new charges on June 22.
Mr. Delossantos was convicted of drunken driving in 2006. Last September, after allegedly leaving the scene of an accident on Napeague while driving one of his fleet of taxis, he was arrested on the same charge. His company, Exclusive Taxi, was one of the biggest cab companies in Montauk at the time. The town’s licensing board has since revoked his right to own and/or operate taxis in East Hampton. Mr. Delossantos is due to go back before the licensing board on June 21, as he attempts to transfer ownership of the company. He will be arraigned on the new charges next Thursday.
Rick McFarland does not have a serious criminal history. He was accused in 2010 of misdemeanor assault, but was found not guilty after a jury trial in East Hampton. He was convicted of disorderly conduct. He will be arraigned on June 22.
Neither of the Mateo-Brito brothers has a criminal record. Marbin Mateo-Brito will be arraigned on June 22, as will Ms. Gregg, who has never been convicted of a crime; her only brushes with the law stem from violation charges of harassment.
As the truncated video of the incident went viral, rumors about the brawl also spread, especially in Montauk. One in particular held that several of the combatants were cab drivers. That does not appear to be true. None of those charged are registered as cabbies, according to the office of the East Hampton Town Clerk.