Kellogg House roof revamp under way in Baldwin

Baldwinites awoke last Friday to a long-awaited sight — the beginning of restoration work on the historic Kellogg House on Merrick Road. “This is absolutely great,” Nassau County Executive …

Obituary

Longtime Kennedy Principal Lorraine Poppe dies

Lorraine Poppe, a beloved and transformational educator for 44 years, died on Tuesday after a long period of declining health.

Meadow club is ‘Aiming for Amherst’

For the first time, Meadow Elementary School competed in the Future Problem Solving Program for the 2018-2019 school year, and took home first place in the “Community Problem Solver” category. …

Homeless man indicted in gas station murder near Baldwin border

Joshua Roston, the man charged with hitting and killing popular South Hempstead gas station manager Cemal Dagdeviren in January, was back in Nassau County April 9 and arraigned on murder and other charges. Roston, a homeless man whose last known address was in Baldwin, had fought extradition to Long Island after he turned himself in to Philadelphia police on Jan. 18. A Philadelphia judge issued an extradition order, known as a governor’s warrant, earlier this month, according to the Nassau County Police Department. Roston faces three counts of second-degree murder, leaving the scene of an incident, two counts of first-degree robbery, one count of third-degree robbery, three counts of petit larceny and two counts of first-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument. Detective Lt. Stephen Fitzpatrick, of the NCPD’s Homicide Squad, said that Roston was charged with three counts of murder because there are many ways to kill someone. “And in this particular incident,” Fitzpatrick explained at a news conference the day the charges were filed, “this conformed into any one of those three categories.” According to the indictment, on Jan. 14, Roston intended to kill Dagdeviren when he struck him as he tried to avoid paying for $22 worth of gas at the Pit Stop in South Hempstead. Dagdeviren tried to stop Roston from leaving the gas station without paying, which he had done a number of times, the NCPD said. The second murder charge alleges that Roston acted in a way that created a grave risk of death to another person. “It was a particularly heinous and depraved way that he ran over Mr. Dagdeviren,” Fitzpatrick said. The third count states that Roston’s alleged robbery of the gas station caused Dagdeviren’s death. If convicted of any one of the murder charges, Roston faces 25 years to life in prison. He is due back in court on May 9. The other charges stem from previous incidents in which Roston allegedly fled gas stations without paying, and the forged instrument charges relate to cases in which he tried to pay for gas with counterfeit money. He was previously convicted of assaulting a Nassau County police officer and has convictions in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and North Carolina for other crimes. “This wasn’t a first-time occurrence for Mr. Roston,” Fitzpatrick said. “He knew what he was doing, and on that day he chose to take a life.” Roston will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas said in a statement. “An innocent 59-year-old man lost his life because this defendant allegedly chose to run him over rather than pay for $22 worth of gas,” Singas said. “This senseless murder shocks the conscience, and our prosecutors will aggressively seek justice for Mr. Dagdeviren and his family.” Joseph LoPiccolo, Roston’s attorney, had not returned calls seeking comment as the Herald went to press. In interviews with several TV stations, LoPiccolo said his client was innocent of murder and that he fled the gas station in an act of self-defense. “He believes he was fleeing for his own safety at that time,” LoPiccolo said. LoPiccolo also stated that Roston was unaware that he had hit Dagdeviren. “I’ll let that one play out in court,” Fitzpatrick said at the news conference. Roston turned himself in to Philadelphia police once his name and photo from a prior arrest were released on television, but fought extradition to Nassau County for close to three months. LoPiccolo said that Roston went to Philadelphia police in an attempt to clear his name. Hundreds of Baldwin, South Hempstead and Rockville Centre residents mourned Dagdeviren after he was run down. He was remembered as a kind man and a conscientious business owner. “I think it might just give a small level of comfort, a small amount of comfort to the Dagdeviren family, that the guy who did this has been extradited back here,” Nassau County Executive Laura Curran, a Baldwinite who lives near the Pit Stop, said. “He’s in custody here, the D.A. will take over and make sure he’s prosecuted to the full extent of the law.” Dagdeviren’s son Ceyhun stood alongside law enforcement personnel at the news conference, but declined to speak with reporters.

Baldwin pinpoints its struggles

Some would say even the bible opens with talk about the “big inning.” The topic is certainly one that the Baldwin softball team has grappled with, as the Lady Bruins – 0-6 in Conference AA-II, 3-6 overall – seek an antidote to the single-frame lapses.

NYC teacher from Baldwin charged with sex abuse of minor

A Baldwin man was charged with sexually abusing an 11-year-old girl at the Brooklyn school he teaches at, according to New York City Police. Daniel Santiago, 29, faces one count each of sex abuse and …

Lights out for Baldwin fireworks?

For the first time in 12 years, Baldwin will not have its annual fireworks show — unless the community pitches in, Baldwin Chamber of Commerce President Erik Mahler said. The chamber, which pays …

Health

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center opens in central Nassau

Thirty-nine-year-old Stacy Miranda is an ice climber — that is, she scales cliff faces coated in ice. She does so as a member of Climb for Hope, a nonprofit organization that raises funds to …

Baldwin a work in progress

A lack of success on groundballs and draws ultimately led to Baldwin dropping its Nassau Conference A boys’ lacrosse opener to visiting Plainview, 10-6, despite leading by a couple of goals after the first quarter on April 2.

Nassau Republicans oppose 5-cent fee on paper bags despite support from activists in Rockville Centre, Long Island

Though Republican Nassau County legislators earlier this month made it clear that they would not support a 5-cent fee on paper bags, their colleagues in and around Rockville Centre are dedicated to pushing the measure, which they say will spur more people to bring reusable bags when shopping.

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