Nassau police called as film shoot mistaken for crime

It was like something out of a movie.

There was the drama being shot Tuesday at a Bellmore convenience store, complete with actors armed with guns and hostages and 35 extras sitting on the floor.

And then there was the one that unfolded when the real police showed up - not knowing they were walking onto a movie set. The crew had failed to notify the department, as required by law.

So less than an hour into filming, about 10:45 a.m., a passerby saw what was happening and called 911.

About 20 officers responded to the scene, said Det. Sgt. Vincent Garcia of Nassau police.

Inside Cool Stop, two officers identified themselves and one actor screamed, "It's a movie! It's a movie!" Garcia said. Within minutes, officers realized the misunderstanding.

"This is a situation that could have quickly gotten out of control," Garcia said. "Officers showed great restraint in not shooting."

Had officers been alerted by filmmakers, an armed police officer would have been on the set, police said.

Fred Carpenter, of Shirley, said he didn't apply for a permit to film the scene because he was renting private property and had gotten the permission from the store. However, Carpenter said he regrets not telling officials. "Thank God it turned out to be a happy ending," he said.

When the real cops appeared on the scene, director Fred Carpenter, 48, unaware of the commotion, continued recording "Jesse," an independent film about a Nassau County Police detective who is investigating the death of her brother who was killed by the mob.

In the scene being filmed, the movie's lead actress walks into a robbery and hostage situation. Instead, the real Nassau police surrounded the small store and went inside.

"I thought it was part of the movie," said Cool Stop manager Sanjay Patel, 32, who has a small role in the movie.

Even Carpenter, who wrote the script, was thrown off. "For a moment I thought they were part of the movie then I thought, wait a minute, I didn't write this scene," he said. "It was very tense for a while."

Carpenter had been set to film a scene of "Jesse" at the Nassau County Police Headquarters in Mineola Wednesday. Garcia said that shoot has been canceled.

No arrests were made and no charges were filed, but Nassau County Police Commissioner Lawrence W. Mulvey has ordered a full investigation into the incident, police said.

By Tuesday afternoon, the film's cast and crew was at another location filming scenes for the movie, scheduled to debut in October.

Carpenter said he hopes to never come face to face with a real life drama like yesterday's again. "I like make-believe a lot better than reality," he said.