2 Westbury men charged in violent street fight, Nassau police say

Two Westbury men are facing assault charges for their alleged role in a violent street fight early Tuesday morning that left one suspect with puncture wounds to his chest and the other with a fractured jaw, Nassau police said.

Saul Zavata, 44, and Jose Israel Bonilla, 34, both residents of the same home on Pleasant Avenue, were arrested at a hospital and charged Tuesday with second-degree assault. Detectives are searching for a third, unidentified suspect who was also involved in the violent altercation, police said.

Five men were inside the Pleasant Avenue home Tuesday at around 3 a.m. when an argument ensued between Zavata and the unidentified suspect, detectives said. The men then went outside to continue the argument and the confrontation became physical, police said.

Zavata, using a large kitchen knife, attempted to stab the unidentified man but Bonilla, who had come out of the home to break up the fight, intervened and was stabbed in the chest, police said.

Bonilla then picked up the knife and threw it at Zavata, striking him in the face. Zavata suffered a fractured jaw and facial lacerations, police said.

Zavata and Bonilla will be arraigned when they recover from their injuries, police said.

The search for the third suspect is ongoing, police said.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.