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Southold Police Blotter: Mulch fire in Southold, handgun found in Mattituck

A Southold man called police around 12:49 p.m. last Tuesday to report a mulch fire in his neighbor’s backyard. Police, along with members of the local fire department, responded and extinguished the fire. The neighbor told police that the homeowner, a Southold man, frequently has fires in his backyard and that attempts to contact him are always unsuccessful. The neighbor left a voicemail on the homeowner’s phone notifying him of the incident, as he was not home. Police advised the neighbor to reach out again if a future incident occurs.

• A Mattituck man found a handgun in an RV he was cleaning out to have sold for the estate of its deceased owner last Tuesday at approximately 2:05 p.m. He requested that police safeguard the weapon until the estate decides what to do with it, police said. Police collected the handgun and determined that it had not been stolen.

• Police responded to a Mattituck man who notified them last Wednesday around 11:03 a.m. that two vehicles were blocking a driveway on Maple Lane in Mattituck where “no parking during school hours” signs were present. Police contacted the mother of one of the drivers, who said her son, a Mattituck man, would remove his white 2000 Chevrolet S-10 from the location. Several attempts were made to contact the driver of the other vehicle, also a Mattituck man, and a voicemail was left on his phone, police said.

• At approximately 8 a.m. Sunday, police responded to a Cutchogue man who reported that a white 1994 Ford Explorer had been parked outside of his house for several days. Police ran a DMV check on the vehicle and found it was unregistered, uninsured and contained switched license plates. Police confiscated the plates and Wilks Towing transported the vehicle to their yard. Police attempted to contact the individual last seen driving the truck, a Mattituck man, but were unable to reach him.

• A Mattituck woman notified police around 3:27 p.m. last Thursday that she had received an unsolicited scam email from “[email protected]” on her Optonline account, stating that her account had been hacked and that $918 worth of bitcoin was being extorted from her. The woman contacted Cablevision about the incident and changed her password. No further information is available at this time, police said.

• Around 9:32 p.m. Friday a Cutchogue man notified police that fireworks were being set off in a nearby backyard. Police arrived to the scene and confirmed the activity of fireworks, notifying the Cutchogue individual who was setting them off not to do so anymore. The individual said there were no more and agreed not to use them in the future, police said. No additional fireworks were found at the Depot Lane residence.

• Two Cutchogue women contacted police Friday around 10:13 p.m. to report that when they arrived home that day, their back door was open. One of the women said she found footprints that were not previously present in the entry hallway. She also reported that a white statue valued at $100 had been damaged in the home. No further information is available at this time, police said.

Those who are named in police reports have not been convicted of any crime or violation. The charges against them may later be reduced or withdrawn, or they may be found innocent.