Three Men Arrested With Molotov Cocktails During Central Islip Traffic Stop

A routine traffic stop on Lexington Avenue near Calebs Path in Central Islip turned into a weapons arrest early Tuesday after Third Precinct patrol officers found two Molotov cocktails inside a car being driven erratically through the neighborhood just before 2:30 a.m.

Officers pulled over a 2008 Honda Accord at 2:28 a.m. and immediately observed two glass bottles filled with gasoline with gasoline-soaked rags protruding from the tops, sitting in the passenger compartment of the vehicle. Emergency Service Section officers were called to the scene and disarmed the devices.

Three men were arrested: Lorenzo Alvarado-Navarrete, 18, of Bay Shore; Elvis Romero-Martinez, 20, of Brentwood; and Albert Yanes-Moran, 20, of Brentwood. All three were charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a felony. Romero-Martinez, who was driving the Honda, was also issued multiple traffic summonses. The trio was held overnight at the Third Precinct and was scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday, March 11, at First District Court in Central Islip. It was not immediately clear whether any of the men had retained counsel.

Third Squad detectives, along with Arson and Criminal Intelligence detectives, investigated the incident and determined it was not terrorism-related. Investigators concluded the men planned to use the devices to cause property damage as part of an ongoing dispute, according to Suffolk County Police.