NEWSDAY (New York, New York) 20 September 06 Alligator owner a study in contrasts (Christine Armario and Carl MacGowan)
Manny Matos will never forget the LILCO service call he made to the home of Steve Weinkselbaum in the early 1990s.
Called to fix a malfunctioning heater in the basement, Matos said he entered Weinkselbaum's Lindenhurst home and discovered an indoor ecosystem filled with snakes, spiders, turtles and other creepy, crawly things. After crossing a bridge spanning a small lagoon, he bent down to fix the burner and spotted an iguana, which hissed at him.
'I almost got attacked by that iguana,' Matos said Wednesday. 'It was making this weird noise. This thing was huge. I come from Puerto Rico, where they have iguanas, but this thing was out of this world.'
Weinkelsbaum's arrest Tuesday on dozens of charges from state and local animal control authorities stirred strong emotions among those who have encountered him over the years.
While he is accused of owning dangerous animals, some said he was a savior of local wildlife.
Authorities rounded up a menagerie of exotic creatures, including a Burmese python, two electric eels, a Nile crocodile and eight alligators.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation charged Weinkselbaum, 64, with 35 counts of illegal possession of endangered or threatened species. The Suffolk Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals charged Weinkselbaum with 13 misdemeanor counts of abusing or neglecting animals.
Weinkselbaum pleaded not guilty Wednesday in First District Court in Central Islip. He was released after posting $1,500 bail and is due back in court on Oct. 4.
He faces a maximum $250 fine on each of the state charges and up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine for each SPCA count.
'In 22 years of doing this, I have never seen anything like this in a home,' said SPCA chief Roy Gross. 'Those animals could have gotten out in these makeshift enclosures and the public would have been in danger.'
Gross said a herpetologist was bit by a snapping turtle while officers removed animals from the home, while one alligator was suspended from a ceiling on a plexiglass platform held by a latch.
'If that latch or the screws came loose, I would have had an alligator on my head,' Gross said.
Fish, birds and several emus on the property were found to be healthy and were left at the house with Weinkselbaum's son, who was not charged, Gross said.
State law requires a license to possess endangered species for certain purposes, such as zoos and scientific research, said DEC spokeswoman Maureen Wren. Licenses are available for wildlife rehabilitators who pass a state exam. Weinkselbaum had no license, Wren said.
Weinkselbaum, known as 'Snake' to friends, is a former vice president of the Long Island Herpetological Society but left the group about 15 years ago and only recently rejoined, club officials said.
'He was just one of these eccentric reptile guys,' said president Vin Russo, recalling Weinkselbaum's earlier involvement in the club. 'The reptile industry has come a long way since then. ... Today they're common mainstream pets.'
He added that members are expected to comply with state law. 'We're not advocates of people keeping crocodilians, because they are dangerous,' he said.
Weinkselbaum has his defenders, such as Rosanne Rousseau of Brightwaters, who said she was outraged by his arrest. She said she rescued animals with Weinkselbaum, whose home is 'meticulously clean.'
'He's our Steve Irwin of Long Island,' she said. 'The only thing he could be guilty of is that he says, 'Yes,' when people ask him to take animals.'
Alligator owner a study in contrasts