Ronkonkoma man arrested after trying to steal car with children inside
A Brentwood father ran back from a smoke shop after spotting a man climb into his running Volkswagen with two children inside. Suffolk police say quick intervention stopped a theft and a child-endangerment case.
A routine stop at a Brentwood smoke shop turned into a fast-moving attempt to steal a car with two children inside, and it ended only after the father, a smoke shop employee and Suffolk County Police officers moved in within moments. Police say the running 2025 Volkswagen was parked outside Bougatfa Zero smoke shop at 656 Suffolk Avenue when the suspect climbed into the driver’s seat.
Suffolk County Police identified the suspect as Mustafa Attia, 23, of Ronkonkoma. The children inside the vehicle were 6 and 5 years old, and their father had briefly gone into the store before seeing Attia enter the car. He ran back with a smoke shop employee and tried to stop him as multiple people called 911, police said.
Third Precinct officers pulled Attia from the vehicle before he could drive away and placed him under arrest. The children were not injured.
Authorities charged Attia with attempted grand larceny, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child and possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree. He was taken to South Shore University Hospital in Bay Shore for evaluation and is expected to be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on a later date.
The case adds to a string of Brentwood-area vehicle thefts that have put children at risk. In December 2025, Suffolk County Police arrested a 17-year-old from Central Islip after a running 2014 Honda Civic was stolen from a Whipple Street driveway in Brentwood with a 3-year-old inside. Police later found that child unharmed in Hauppauge.
A second 17-year-old was later arrested in that case and charged with third-degree grand larceny, endangering the welfare of a child and second-degree reckless endangerment. Taken together, the two incidents show how quickly a running car can become a criminal target, and how much can be at stake in the seconds before police arrive.
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