MINEOLA, N.Y. – Acting Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced that a Baldwin man who allegedly struck a home with Molotov cocktails in two November attacks was arraigned on a 21-count grand jury indictment today.
Joseph Ferrufino, 22, was arraigned today by Acting Supreme Court Justice Teresa Corrigan on the following indictment charges:
• Arson in the 1st Degree (an A-I violent felony)
• Seven counts of Attempted Murder in the 2nd Degree (a B violent felony)
• Attempted Arson in the 1st Degree (a B violent felony)
• Two counts of Arson in the 2nd Degree (a B violent felony)
• Two counts of Arson in the 3rd Degree (a C felony)
• Two counts of Assault in the 2nd Degree (a D violent felony)
• Four counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the 3rd Degree (a D violent felony)
• Reckless Endangerment in the 1st Degree (a D felony)
• Resisting Arrest (an A misdemeanor)
The defendant, who pleaded not guilty, was remanded. He faces up to 25 years to life in prison on the top charge and is due back in court on Jan. 13.
“This defendant – on two separate occasions – allegedly threw Molotov cocktails at a Baldwin property and endangered the lives of the people in the home, their neighbors and our first responders,” Acting DA Singas said. “The defendant’s alleged arson spree ended when our partners in the Nassau County Police Department First Precinct chased him down and arrested him.”
Acting DA Singas said at approximately 8:50 p.m. on Nov. 17, Ferrufino allegedly attempted to set a Baldwin house, where his ex-girlfriend lived, on fire by throwing a Molotov cocktail at the front bay window of the home. The bottle, however, did not shatter the window. A resident of the home chased the defendant down the street but the subject ran away. Nassau County Police Department officers were called to the scene but were unable to locate the defendant and installed a Caper (Criminal Apprehension Produced by Electronic Resources) alert system inside the home. Three people were in the home at the time of the attack.
On Nov. 24, at approximately 6 a.m., the defendant allegedly threw another Molotov cocktail through a second story window, which started a fire in the bedroom. A teenager in the house suffered a laceration to her foot from broken glass and an adult woman in the home suffered from smoke inhalation and first degree burns on her legs. The defendant also poured a flammable liquid on a car in the driveway and in the front area of the house and set it on fire. Four people were in the home at the time of the attack.
A resident in the home, who recognized the assailant as his daughter’s ex-boyfriend, chased the defendant down the street but was unable to catch him. NCPD First Precinct officers, responding to the Caper alarm being activated, arrived at the house and a number of officers were dispatched to the area to find the subject.
Ferrufino was discovered nearby and two NCPD officers suffered minor injuries as they apprehended him.
Assistant District Attorney Patrick Brand of Acting DA Singas’ County Court Trial Bureau is prosecuting the case. Ferrufino is represented by Michael Berger, Esq.