The man who broke into a home near Hofstra University on Long Island early Friday, took hostages and was killed in a shootout with the police that also left a 21-year-old college student dead, had an extensive criminal record and was wanted for violating his parole on a robbery conviction, the authorities said Saturday.
[h=6]Nassau County Police Department[/h]Dalton Smith
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[h=6]Sleepy Hollow High School, via Associated Press[/h]Andrea Rebello as seen in the 2010 Sleepy Hollow High School yearbook.
The Nassau County police identified the suspect as Dalton Smith, 30, of Hempstead, N.Y. He was identified through fingerprint analysis, the police said.
The police said Mr. Smith forced his way into a home rented by Hofstra University students and took several people hostage. Among them were Andrea Rebello, a junior from Westchester County, and her twin sister, Jessica. Andrea Rebello was killed during the invasion.
Investigators have not said who fired the fatal shot. That was among the unanswered questions that lingered a day after the home invasion.
About 15 or 20 minutes elapsed from the time the gunman burst into the home about 2:15 a.m. Friday until the last shot was fired. It was unclear if the house was chosen at random or whether the gunman had a reason. The authorities said it appeared that Mr. Smith and the police exchanged fire, but it was not known who fired first or whether officers had already entered the home at the time Ms. Rebello was shot. In one recorded police conversation, officers can be heard saying that the suspect was pointing a gun at the head of one of the hostages.
Neighbors said they heard what sounded like a woman begging for her life just before shots were fired.
Kenneth Lack of the Nassau County Police Department said that investigators had hoped to give additional details at a news conference on Saturday morning, but that the forensic analysis was not prepared in time. He said he did not know when the results would be available. Later, the police rescheduled the news conference for 8 p.m. Saturday.
Given Mr. Smith’s criminal past, questions are likely to be raised about why he was not more closely monitored. The authorities issued a warrant for his arrest on April 25 after he failed to check in with a parole officer. He has spent much of the last decade in prison, mostly for robbery convictions. He was released on parole in February after serving a nine-year sentence.
The authorities said Mr. Smith lived in Hempstead, near the university, but there is no address for anyone by his name in public records.
The uncertainty has left residents near the university fearful at a time when many would be celebrating the end of exams and preparing for graduation. Officials at Hofstra said the university would go ahead with commencement ceremonies scheduled for Sunday.
Around campus on Saturday, many students were preparing to leave for summer vacation, lugging suitcases and boxes to waiting cars. While most said they felt secure on campus, some expressed concern about security in the neighborhoods surrounding it, where some students prefer to rent houses rather than live in cramped dorms. Ms. Rebello and her sister lived in a home on California Avenue, a typically quiet block in Uniondale that some said was uncomfortable to walk through after dark.
“Walking after class after 7 p.m. or 9 p.m., it feels really unsafe to walk outside of campus across Hempstead Turnpike,” said Jack Qiu, 20, a sophomore who said he preferred to live in the dorms because they are safer. “If you walk around California Avenue and the streets around them, there are streets there that don’t have street lamps and they feel pretty unsafe to walk.”
A funeral for Ms. Rebello has been scheduled for Wednesday in Tarrytown, N.Y., the Coffee Funeral Home said in a statement. She will be buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.
Angela Macropoulos contributed.
[h=6]Nassau County Police Department[/h]Dalton Smith
[h=4]Connect with NYTMetro[/h]
Follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook for news and conversation.
[h=6]Sleepy Hollow High School, via Associated Press[/h]Andrea Rebello as seen in the 2010 Sleepy Hollow High School yearbook.
The Nassau County police identified the suspect as Dalton Smith, 30, of Hempstead, N.Y. He was identified through fingerprint analysis, the police said.
The police said Mr. Smith forced his way into a home rented by Hofstra University students and took several people hostage. Among them were Andrea Rebello, a junior from Westchester County, and her twin sister, Jessica. Andrea Rebello was killed during the invasion.
Investigators have not said who fired the fatal shot. That was among the unanswered questions that lingered a day after the home invasion.
About 15 or 20 minutes elapsed from the time the gunman burst into the home about 2:15 a.m. Friday until the last shot was fired. It was unclear if the house was chosen at random or whether the gunman had a reason. The authorities said it appeared that Mr. Smith and the police exchanged fire, but it was not known who fired first or whether officers had already entered the home at the time Ms. Rebello was shot. In one recorded police conversation, officers can be heard saying that the suspect was pointing a gun at the head of one of the hostages.
Neighbors said they heard what sounded like a woman begging for her life just before shots were fired.
Kenneth Lack of the Nassau County Police Department said that investigators had hoped to give additional details at a news conference on Saturday morning, but that the forensic analysis was not prepared in time. He said he did not know when the results would be available. Later, the police rescheduled the news conference for 8 p.m. Saturday.
Given Mr. Smith’s criminal past, questions are likely to be raised about why he was not more closely monitored. The authorities issued a warrant for his arrest on April 25 after he failed to check in with a parole officer. He has spent much of the last decade in prison, mostly for robbery convictions. He was released on parole in February after serving a nine-year sentence.
The authorities said Mr. Smith lived in Hempstead, near the university, but there is no address for anyone by his name in public records.
The uncertainty has left residents near the university fearful at a time when many would be celebrating the end of exams and preparing for graduation. Officials at Hofstra said the university would go ahead with commencement ceremonies scheduled for Sunday.
Around campus on Saturday, many students were preparing to leave for summer vacation, lugging suitcases and boxes to waiting cars. While most said they felt secure on campus, some expressed concern about security in the neighborhoods surrounding it, where some students prefer to rent houses rather than live in cramped dorms. Ms. Rebello and her sister lived in a home on California Avenue, a typically quiet block in Uniondale that some said was uncomfortable to walk through after dark.
“Walking after class after 7 p.m. or 9 p.m., it feels really unsafe to walk outside of campus across Hempstead Turnpike,” said Jack Qiu, 20, a sophomore who said he preferred to live in the dorms because they are safer. “If you walk around California Avenue and the streets around them, there are streets there that don’t have street lamps and they feel pretty unsafe to walk.”
A funeral for Ms. Rebello has been scheduled for Wednesday in Tarrytown, N.Y., the Coffee Funeral Home said in a statement. She will be buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.
Angela Macropoulos contributed.