Calm, Cool and Collected

CSEA member, and Nassau County Deputy Sheriff Tony Ingenito has been on the job for 21 years, but never did he encounter a more dangerous situation than he did on the afternoon of Monday, August 27, 2007. 

Ingenito has been on loan to the United States Marshals Service for the last 3 years as a Deputy Sergeant Investigator on the New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force, consisting of 25-35 officers.  Ingenito is responsible for apprehending fugitives in Nassau and Suffolk County jurisdictions. 

On the night of August 26th, the task force and its members were put on the case to find fugitive murderer Paul Devoe.  Some of the task force officers on the case included Ingenito, along with Nassau Detective George Freund, Suffolk Deputy Sheriff Joe Maggio, and Suffolk Probation Officer Don O’Connor.  Devoe’s story had been chronicled extensively in the media for five Texas murders, and one in Pennsylvania. 

On the afternoon of the 27th, the task force officers visited the home of a known associate of Devoe, for what was expected to merely be an interview with the man.  In a bizarre turn of events, Devoe appeared from one of the bedrooms, and engaged in a 30-40 minute standoff with the Task Force team. 

The four officers showed remarkable composure in restoring some form of sanity during what easily could have become a fatal situation.  They all took separate responsibilities in maintaining safety for those involved.  Eventually Devoe surrendered, was placed under arrest, and confessed to all six murders.  Thanks to the quick thinking of Ingenito, Freund, Maggio and O’Connor, nobody was harmed.

“I would have to credit all the great training the U.S. Marshals Service puts us through for helping to get us through this situation,” Ingenito said.  “Every year we go through the same program, and then learn even more.”  In addition, to become a Nassau County Deputy Sheriff, Ingenito had to go through the Nassau County Police Academy and receives regular in-service training.

For his great work in this case and many others, Investigator Ingenito was honored as the 2007 Deputy Sheriff of the Year by the East Meadow Civic Association.  Though, admittedly this was Ingenito’s most intense situation in his career, he has had several other publicized cases, including apprehending the murderer of local anti-gang activist Hykiem Coney in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  Though Ingenito’s job is to keep the streets of Long Island safe, he sometimes has to cross county lines if leads dictate to do so.

Ingenito worked in Warrants, the Domestic Violence Unit, and then was Supervisor of the Warrant Squad of the Deputy Sheriff’s within the Sheriff’s Department for eighteen years before going on loan to the U.S. Marshals Service three years ago.  Ingenito says of his work with the U.S. Marshals, “I love it there.”

And Long Island residents love having him there keeping their streets safe.