Man pleads not guilty after allegedly pointing gun at 6-year-old, court orders anger management
MANHASSET, Long Island (WABC) -- A man was is facing several charges for allegedly pointing a gun at a 6-year-old on Long Island after a Halloween treat was mistakenly brought to the wrong house.
Michael Yifan Wen, 43, was charged with menacing and endangering the welfare of a child.
"I just wanted to scare them," Wen told police, according to court documents.
Shortly before 7:30 p.m. Saturday, police say a mother was driving her three kids and her nephew to a house on Rockrest Road in Manhasset. Her daughter, age 10, was dropping a goody bag off at what she initially thought was her friend's house.
The girl and her 6-year-old brother exited their mother's vehicle and approached Wen's house. They rang the doorbell and left a goody bag full of candy for Halloween on the front porch and returned to the vehicle.
The mother drove down the block before her daughter notified her that the address may have been incorrect. The family returned to the house on Rockrest Road, and the 6-year-old boy went to retrieve the goody bag from the porch.
Wen then allegedly opened the door, stepped out of the house and pointed a black handgun at the 6-year-old boy's head, police said.
The victim told police that Wen cursed at them to get off his property, according to court documents.
The boy's mother called police, and Wen was arrested without incident.
"I feel terrible. It's awful. It's terrible what happened, in my town too? In Manhasset... I feel bad for the families involved, it's a tough situation," a neighbor said. "There's no reason to point a gun at a 6-year-old's face."
Wen pleaded not guilty Sunday at his arraignment at the First District Court in Hempstead.
"It's horrific," neighbor Steve George said. "The question is, what happens if it was your child? How would you feel?"
Wen will undergo a court-ordered mental health evaluation and take an anger management class.
"I want to thank the commissioner and police department, for doing a great job securing all of those weapons. To our knowledge, all of his weapons have been seized," said Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.
Nassau County police say they will be out in full force on Halloween Tuesday.
"The county executive has put out Operation Overwatch, which is an extra 20 officers that's out there so we're covering it. We got it covered," said Nassau County Police Department Commissioner Patrick Ryder.
Wen is due back in court on November 13.
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