Illegal Immigrant Charged In First-Ever Violation Of New York Anti-Mask Law

Police in Nassau County, New York, made a first arrest under a new law that prohibits the wearing of facial coverings, such as masks.

Police in the jurisdiction in the Long Island suburbs of New York City responded to reports at about 8:00 p.m. evening of August 25 lurking on Spindle Road near the line dividing Levittown and Hicksville, about 30 miles east of Manhattan.

Police found suspect Wesslin Omar Ramirez Castillo, 18, garbed in black clothing and wearing a ski mask, also known as a balaclava, covering  his face with the exception of his eyes. He was also in the possession of a large    knife, according to police. A photo of the suspect, taken by Nassau County police, shows him in the black-out garb, favored by criminals and Antifa protesters in the U.S. and other countries.
According to a police press release, Ramirez Castillo "continued to display suspicious behavior while attempting to conceal a large bulge in his waistband which turned out to be a 14-inch knife." He then "refused to comply with officers' commands as he was placed under arrest without further incident."

The Hicksville resident suspect is an illegal Guatemalan immigrant who entered the U.S. in 2019, according to Fox News. Police said that enforcing the mask ban and other factors prompted them to interrogate Ramirez Castillo who, they said, was intent on carrying out a crime.

Ominously, Ramirez Castillo suggested that a conspiracy is afoot. "They gave me the knife and mask to rob someone," he told police. The press release did not identify "they."

Ramirez Castillo is the first to face charges under Nassau County's Mask Transparency Act. The new law prohibits facial covering in public but exempts people who wear masks for health, safety, "religious or cultural purposes, or for the peaceful celebration of a holiday or similar religious or cultural event for which masks or facial coverings are customarily worn." It was passed by a Republican-dominated local legislature earlier this month following incidents involving masses of protesters concealing their identity during violent protests. The mask ban makes illegal the wearing of prohibited facial coverings and provides for up to $1000 in fine.

Ramirez Castillo is facing fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon and second-degree obstruction of governmental administration, as well as violating the Mask Transparency Act. According to Nassau County officials, the arrest marks a "success with the new mask law."

In Ramirez Castillo's native Guatemala, face coverings were banned during the country's famed Holy Week processions, following a spate of murders in the 1930s. Traditionally in Spain and Hispanic America, masked penitents processed to churches on Good Friday. The masks had been intended to preserve their anonymity, but were prohibited on other days.