Brentwood Residents Shocked At Body In Street

A body was left in the street for hours while police responded to the crime scene

Residents of a Long Island neighborhood are still reeling from a gruesome scene: a dead body left lying for up to eight hours in the street.

The Suffolk County Police Department Homicide Squad identified the man who was stabbed to death on a Brentwood street on July 20 as Edgar G. Villalobos, 28, of 28 Bay Shore Ave., Bay Shore.

Officers from Suffolk’s Third Precinct responded to Patton St. in Brentwood at 12:45 July 20 after neighbors reported shouting in the street. When officers arrived, they found a man lying in the roadway. The man had been stabbed.

According to the Associated Press, the incident has prompted questions about a change in police staffing. Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer says that was not a factor.

A union official says it took about eight hours for a detective to arrive for fingerprinting and photos of the stabbing victim. The commissioner declined to discuss the timing.

Homicide Det. Lt. Jack Fitzpatrick says it took a long time to process the crime scene because there was a lot of evidence to be gathered. He says covering the body prematurely could have contaminated the scene.

Anyone with information regarding this crime is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS or contact the Homicide Squad at 631-852-6392. All calls will be kept confidential.

With the Associated Press