Centereach man charged with tampering with red light cameras in Ronkonkoma is due in court

RONKONKOMA, N.Y. (WABC) -- A man on Long Island charged with tampering with several red light cameras in Ronkonkoma is due in court Tuesday.

Stephen Ruth was arrested in August. Ruth, 42, of Centereach, was charged with four counts of Criminal Tampering 3rd Degree and four counts of Obstruction of Governmental Administration 2nd Degree.

Suffolk County police received anonymous tips regarding a video Facebook post that showed a man tampering with red light cameras. Using an expandable pole, the man pushed the cameras to point towards the sky so that they would not capture violators, authorities said.

According to police, Ruth tampered with the camera on Ocean Avenue and Long Island Expressway South Service Road in Ronkonkoma, and with two cameras at Hawkins Avenue and the Long Island Expressway South Service Road in Ronkonkoma.

The cameras are maintained by Affiliated Computer Services Incorporated, from Baltimore Maryland.