Cops: Man punches store clerk for refusing to sell him cigarettes

A Riverhead man was apprehended after he allegedly punched a store clerk in the face and ran from the scene, Riverhead Police said.

Officers responded to a Riverhead gas station around 7:37 a.m. on Monday morning where Justin T. Gray, 26, allegedly got into a dispute with the Hess Mart clerk who refused to sell him cigarettes without identification, police said.

Mr. Gray allegedly became irate and punched the clerk in the face, causing a laceration that required medical treatment at Peconic Bay Medical Center.

By the time officers arrived at the gas station on Old Country Road Mr. Gray had fled the scene, but was captured later at his Riverhead home.

Mr. Gray is charged with of assault and is being held on $1,000 bail.