By Tom Momberg
The Little Neck man facing several felony charges in connection with an attempted armed robbery and shooting at Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City Tuesday entered a not guilty plea at his arraignment, according to the criminal complaint filed by the Nassau County DA.
Oliver Lee, 21, was arraigned in Nassau County Wednesday, where the judge ordered him held on $750,000 bail on charges of robbery, assault and weapons possession, the complaint said.
Lee lives on Douglaston Parkway near the Fairway Shopping Center, where a neighbor said he shares the row house with his mother but was mostly left home alone.
Lee allegedly attempted to steal high-end watches from the Rolex boutique inside the Tourneau Jewelry store at the mall, the Nassau authorities said.
A salesperson showed Lee an $18,000 watch, which he then took while displaying a black semi-automatic handgun and attempted to flee when a retired NYPD sergeant and mall security officer interfered, according to witness testimony in the complaint.
The security officer, Ken Krug, grabbed the gun and accidentally fired it in a struggle with Lee, shooting a mall employee who was brought to the hospital and remains in critical condition, police said.
The conflict was resolved when two more mall security guards and an NYPD inspector saw what was going on and intervened, the complaint said.
The next door neighbor who wished to remain anonymous said he knew little about the family, even though they had lived there for over 20 years. He said Lee never moved away from home and went to community college for a little while, but most of his only experience with the young man was that he often had friends over in the back yard and they were rowdy.
Reach reporter Tom Momberg by e-mail at tmomb
