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Three weeks after dropping a loaded handgun during brawl inside Smith Haven Mall, an East Patchogue teen was indicted Monday on felony weapons charges, Suffolk District attorney Raymond Tierney said.
Tavion Elting, 18, is charged with two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and one count of criminal possession of a firearm, all felony charges connected to the Lake Grove incident on Black Friday, Nov. 29.
Tierney emphasized the dangerous nature of the incident, noting it could have had disastrous consequences.
“A loose loaded gun and a hot-tempered brawl in a crowded mall on Black Friday – this incident was just one breath away from becoming a total nightmare,” he said. “We will be seeking a prosecution outcome that is commensurate with the dreadful potential of this incident in order to deter anyone and everyone from following in these footsteps.”
Authorities said that just after 7 p.m. on Black Friday, Elting allegedly became involved in a fight in the mall’s busy food court. During the altercation, a loaded 9 mm handgun fell out of Elting’s pocket and onto the floor, the district attorney said.
A bystander managed to kick the weapon away from Elting, and another witness placed it in a safe location until Suffolk County Police arrived, according to the criminal complaint. Several witnesses captured footage of the incident on their cell phones, showing Elting searching frantically for the weapon, the district attorney said.
The video evidence allowed police to quickly identify and apprehend him. Tierney’s office stressed that a subsequent examination of the firearm revealed that not only was the weapon loaded, but it also had a round chambered — meaning it was ready to be fired.
Elting was initially arraigned on Nov. 30 on a felony complaint. Tierney’s office had requested bail in the amount of $30,000 cash, $60,000 bond, and $300,000 partially secured bond. However, the court set bail at $5,000 cash, $10,000 bond, and $50,000 partially secured bond.
On Friday, Elting was arraigned on the present indictment before Acting Supreme Court Justice Anthony S. Senft, Jr., who ordered Elting held on $50,000 cash, $100,000 bond, or $500,000 partially secured bond during the pendency of the case.
The defendant is due back in court on Jan. 13. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted on the top count.
Top photo: via Unsplash
