Brookfield Men Plead Not Guilty in Candlewood Lake Island Assault

BROOKFIELD, CT — Two Brookfield men have pleaded not guilty to charges of assault, following an incident in July that left another man with fractures and permanent facial disfigurement.

Richard Nigro, 41, and Neil Yandow, 29, were charged with first-degree assault, first-degree strangulation and interfering with an officer/resisting arrest.

Court documents state that Nigro, his brother-in-law Yandow, the victim and three others took a boat from the Brookfield bar Down the Hatch to a small island in Candlewood Lake outside Echo Bay around 2:30 a.m. on July 14. When they arrived, one of the boaters said something about Yandow's sister/Nigro's wife which elicited a violent response from both men. The men erroneously attacked the victim, who court documents indicate was not the person who made the remark.

The victim sustained a broken nose, chipped tooth, fractures, a deep laceration to his temple, and bruising to his face, arm and legs, police said. His nose and skull are permanently disfigured, according to the affidavit.

The boaters dropped off the victim at the Candlewood East Marina, and proceeded back to Down the Hatch. Police say the victim went to the hospital the next day after seeing the extent of his injuries. A witness contacted police and said that he saw Yandow and Nigro "punching and strangling" the victim, and that they chased after him when he tried to escape.

Yandow and Nigro were arrested July 29 by Environmental Conservation Police. Yandow is being held at the Bridgeport Correctional Institution. Nigro was released on $150,000 bond. Yandow is scheduled to appear before Superior Court in Danbury on Sept. 18, Nigro on Oct. 3. Both men deny ever being on the island, according to the affidavit.