Cops: Man sent minors out in cold to sell door-to-door
A Hempstead man has been charged with child endangerment after Nassau County police said he drove 13-year-olds to Cedarhurst to sell candy door-to-door to fundraise in freezing weather.
The man, Adam Maxwell, 25, of Cornell Street, was charged with three counts of misdemeanor endangerment, according to court records.
He was arraigned Wednesday in First District Court in Hempstead, where he pleaded not guilty and was ordered held on $3,000 cash or $6,000 bond bail. A guard at the Nassau County jail said Maxwell had not posted the bail. He's to return to court in March.
Authorities allege Maxwell picked up the youths in a minivan and dropped them off without supervision to sell the candy and other items for hours.
Some had cell phones to contact him when they were done with their routes, they told police. Others said they were told to rendezvous later.
While some were wearing jackets, one was not dressed appropriately for the weather, court records show.
The children were selling their products in the afternoon and evening when police officers rounded them up and arrested Maxwell on Tuesday.
Police said Maxwell, who's affiliated with a group called the New York Youth Club, was arrested about 8 p.m. after complaints about the children selling the items in the cold.
A spokesman for the Smithtown-based club, Nathan Jackson, said Maxwell has been fired because he drove without a valid driver's license. But Jackson denied there was any child endangerment.
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