🌱 Riverhead Daily: Elf On The Shelf Arrested + No Regents Exams

Diane Witek
Updated ·3 min read

Up and at 'em, Riverhead! It's me again, Diane Witek, your host of the Riverhead Daily. Here are the top 4 stories in Riverhead today.

First, today's weather:

Sun mixing with clouds. High: 36, low: 25.

Here are the top stories in Riverhead today:

  1. Suffolk County Errol Toulon said Tuesday that the Elf on a Shelf has been arrested and currently incarcerated in the Suffolk County Correctional Facility. The Elf allegedly has been destroying kitchen countertops, making messes in bathrooms, and swinging from dining room chandeliers. The Elf has been charged with "silly mischief" and attempting to distract the sheriff from his duties. (Riverhead Patch)

  2. The New York State Department of Education announced yesterday that the Riverhead High School Regents exams, set for January, have been canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The statewide coronavirus test positivity rate was over 10 percent yesterday, with Suffolk County’s being pushed to nearly 14 percent. (RiverheadLOCAL)

  3. More than 130 acres on the northwest corner of Horseblock Road and Sunrise Highway in Brookhaven hamlet has been rezoned from residential to industrial. Part of the property has been used by the town for composting and other waste management purposes. The rezoning was intended to keep developers from making the land a residential subdivision. (Newsday)

  4. Noah Haynes, 18, was arguing with a 17-year-old victim inside LA Fitness on Deer Park Avenue in North Babylon around 7:15 p.m. when staff members asked them to leave. The teens fought in the parking lot, then Haynes returned and confronted the 17 year old in the locker room, authorities said. There, he allegedly slashed the teen in the neck with a metal object and pointed a handgun at him. Three gym members intervened and held Haynes down until police arrived — but he fired one shot during the struggle; luckily no one was hit. (New York Post)

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From my notebook:

  • RiverheadLOCAL: "Suffolk County reached a daily coronavirus test positivity rate of more 13.7 percent yesterday, as public health experts warn families to take precautions against an expanding surge of the coronavirus led by the omicron variant.⁠" (Instagram)

  • NY Marine Rescue Center: "We're so happy that Bowie has found his forever home with Ocean Connections, Inc. Stay tuned for more updates." (Facebook)

  • Riverhead Volunteer Ambulance Corps (RVAC): "Santa will be leaving RVAC shortly! Below is the link to track where he is! https://glympse.com/riverheadsanta." (Facebook)

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Thanks for following along and staying informed! See you all tomorrow for another update.

— Diane Witek

About me: Impassioned Writer, Website Designer, Social Media Marketer and newly proclaimed Baker. Lover of nature and animals of all kinds.

This article originally appeared on the Riverhead Patch