Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Freeport, NY: Man Is Charged in Wife's Death

A Long Island man was charged with murder on Tuesday after he allegedly stabbed his wife to death and then set her on fire using gasoline, a Nassau County Police spokesman said.

Loventino Cassadean, 49 years old, of Freeport, was charged with murdering Felicia Cassadean, 22, in their home Monday morning.

He is accused of leaving her body on a bed in the front bedroom of the house, dousing the bed and an area immediately around it with gasoline and lighting it on fire in what detectives believe may have been an attempt to cover up the alleged murder, the police spokesman said.

Police believe the alleged murder stemmed from a months-long dispute related to criminal sex act charges filed against Mr. Cassadean in April involving another person, the spokesman said. According to court officials, Mr. Cassadean is accused of sodomy in that incident.

Mr. Cassadean pleaded not guilty at an arraignment Tuesday morning and was ordered held without bail, court officials said.

The Nassau County medical examiner was conducting an autopsy of Ms. Cassadean's body to determine an exact cause of death.

Firefighters responding to a house fire around 6 a.m. Monday at 117 Craig Ave. in Freeport, found Ms. Cassadean's body near the front of the house, police said. Around the same time, Mr. Cassadean flagged down a responding Freeport police officer a short distance from the home, police said.

After being interviewed by the officer, Mr. Cassadean was arrested, police said. Police wouldn't go into details of the conversation between Mr. Loventino and the officer.

Authorities said the investigation is continuing and it will be up to the Nassau County district attorney's office to determine whether other charges will be filed

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