Smith Haven Mall security guard forced suspected shoplifter to perform sex act, Suffolk police say

A woman suspected of shoplifting at Smith Haven Mall last summer was forced to "perform a sex act” on a security guard “in exchange” for being allowed to leave, Suffolk police said.

Jose Irizarry, 33, of Holbrook, approached the woman at the Lake Grove mall on Aug. 29, 2022, police said.

“Under the guise of escorting the woman out of the mall (he) brought her into an employees’ only corridor and then into a storage room,” the police said in a statement. It was there that she was forced into the sex act, police said.

Irizarry was arrested Thursday afternoon and charged with first-degree criminal sex act.

At an arrangement Friday in First District Court, a temporary order of protection was issued against Irizarry and bail was set at $50,000 bond or $25,000 cash which was not posted, according to court records.

A lawyer for Irizarry did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday evening.

A representative for the mall also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

With Robert Brodsky