Crime & Safety
NYPD Cop Faces Murder Charge In Death Of 8-Year-Old Son: Police
Michael Valva and his fiancee Angela Pollina were arrested in Long Island after the death of his son Thomas, Suffolk County police said.
NEW YORK CITY — An NYPD cop and his fiancee were arrested on Long Island Friday morning after the death of the officer's young son, according to police.
Michael Valva, 40, and Angela Pollina, 42, are accused of murdering 8-year-old Thomas Valva in Center Moriches on Jan. 17, according to Suffolk County police.
Emergency responders found the boy in the driveway of 11 Bittersweet Lane and rushed him to Long Island Community Hospital where he later died, said police.
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A GoFundMe popped up days later.
"It is with great sadness that I must bury my 8 year old son," the message reads. "He passed recently due to a tragic accident."
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The message doesn't say which parent wrote it.
The boy's mother, Justyna Zubko-Valva, 36, said her second-grade son was "just a joy of everybody’s life" in an interview Friday morning with Newsday.
Zubko-Valva had not seen her son, who had a mild form of autism, after she lost custody years ago, according to Newsday and CBS 880.
Capstat data show Valva has been an officer with the NYPD since 2005.
Long Island Patch editor Lisa Finn contributed to this report.
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