Teen arrested in first violation of New York county’s controversial mask ban

A teenager was arrested over the weekend in Nassau County, New York, after he was seen wearing a mask in public — the first arrest related to the county’s face covering ban signed earlier this month.

Wesslin Omar Ramirez Castillo, 18, of Hicksville, was arrested Sunday in Levittown after officers responded to reports regarding a “suspicious male” walking down Spindle Road dressed in black and “wearing a mask to conceal his identity,” Nassau County Police said. 

Ramirez Castillo allegedly “continued to display suspicious behavior while attempting to conceal a large bulge in his waistband” that ended up being a 14-inch knife, officials said.

Police said that officers stopped him and patted him down under the mask law and found the knife. Ramirez Castillo allegedly refused to comply with officer commands and was placed under arrest.

He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, obstructing governmental administration and charged with violating the Mask Transparency Act. He was arraigned Monday at First District Court in Hempstead. 

Nassau authorities said they weren’t aware of any other mask transparency act violations.

“To be able to facilitate these investigations, we need to unmask them,” a spokesperson said.

The controversial ban on wearing face coverings in public was signed into law Aug. 15 in Nassau County, which covers part of Long Island, just east of New York City. The ban is the first of its kind and was touted as a public safety measure to target those who commit crimes while concealing their faces. However, it has exemptions for health and religious reasons.

Those who violate the law face a misdemeanor charge punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.

County legislator Howard Kopel had said the mask ban bill was introduced in response to “antisemitic incidents, often perpetrated by those in masks” since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7.

While all 12 Republicans in the legislature voted in favor of it, the seven Democrats abstained, NBC New York reported.

Delia DeRiggi-Whitton, the County Legislature’s Democratic minority leader, had called the law “a blatant waste of taxpayer money” and “political theater.”

Critics say the ban poses a risk for those who want to peacefully protest while concealing their identities.