Stolen stormtrooper found, back outside Bay Shore collectors shop
Suffolk Sgt. Matt Augustine and Officers Frank Gigante and Steve D'Amico returned the statue to store owner Richard McWilliams in Bay Shore Saturday. The other stormtrooper was lent to the store by a customer after the original's April 1 theft. Credit: SCPD
A stolen stormtrooper has been found in a home far, far away.
Suffolk police tracked the 3-foot Star Wars figurine taken April 1 from a Bay Shore collectors shop to a home in Wyandanch on Saturday. A Bay Shore woman was arrested in connection with the theft of the figurine from the downtown sidewalk in front of Blast From the Past.
Carissa Savillo, 34, was charged with petit larceny in the stormtrooper theft that was captured on video, police said. Another woman seen on the surveillance footage has not been identified.
Tips led police to the Wyandanch home where the stormtrooper was being held, police said. Officers returned the figurine to the store Saturday afternoon.
"I totally did not expect it. I thought It was gone," Blast From The Past owner Richard McWilliams said. "As soon as it was gone I thought I’d never see it again. This is a happy ending and it feels good to win one."
The stormtrooper, valued between $300 and $400, was part of McWilliams’ personal collection that he used to attract business to the store, which he opened in December.
McWilliams said he didn’t know the women seen taking the figurine on video, but several residents and customers, he said, recognized Savillo as a Bay Shore resident.
Suffolk police said they were investigating how the stormtrooper arrived at the Wyandanch home.
McWilliams said a customer had lent the store a similar stormtrooper that he would now return. He plans to pair the returned stormtrooper with a Darth Vader figure that he recently purchased to display outside the store, he said.
"Hopefully no one’s stupid enough to do this again," McWilliams said. "I would hope she would think about who she’s stealing from. With small businesses struggling, it’s really difficult when you hurt a small business at this time."
John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.
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