LIBERTY  — The Village of Liberty Police Department responded to a report of a large fight and found a 31-year-old male severely beaten and lying unconscious in the parking lot of Knights Inn Hotel on Route 52 in Liberty at approximately 2:05 pm on Friday, March 28, according to a press release from the Department. 

Officers immediately administered first aid to the victim and then transferred care to emergency medical services. EMS personnel transported him first to Garnet Health Medical Center Catskills in Harris and then to Garnet Health Medical Center in Orange County. 

The events leading up to the fight are still being investigated, but there were two suspects arrested on the scene: 1) 26-year-old Michael Maus of Liberty, and 2) 26-year-old Dante VanDunk, age 26 of Liberty. A third suspect, 39-year-old Richard Olsen of Liberty, was also arrested later that evening after an initial investigation led to his identification. 

All three individuals were arraigned in the Town of Liberty Court. The highest bail was set for Maus ($75,000 cash bail, $125,000 bond, or $300,000 partially secured bond), while VanDunk and Olsen received a slightly lower bail ($50,000 cash bail, $100,000 bond or $250,000 partially secured bond). 

On Monday March 31 at approximately 6 p.m., Liberty police arrested a fourth suspect: 43-year-old Jonathan Nipitella of Kiamesha Lake, according to a press release on Tuesday, April 1. Nipitella was taken into custody without incident and charged with gang assault in the 2nd degree (a felony). He was arraigned in the Town of Liberty Court and remanded to Sullivan County Jail without bail.

“This was a violent and troubling incident, and unfortunately, it reflects ongoing concerns at this location,” Village of Liberty Police Chief Steven D’Agata stated in the press release.

When The Democrat reached out for comment, D’Agata elaborated that the Knights Inn has been a hot spot for criminality.

“There have been a number of incidents over the last few years [at the Knights Inn], including the tragic death of a 16-month-old baby,” said the Police Chief, who was referring to the 2023 incident in which parents were arrested after the deceased body of Akasha Luvert was found in the motel. 

D’Agata explained that there has been a high volume of police responses at the Knights Inn and called for help from the community to change the existing culture of criminality. 

“There needs to be systemic change,” D’Agata concluded, to address the social problems leading up to such events, citing substance abuse and homelessness as phenomena that need to be thwarted in order to free our communities of drugs and violence. 

The press release concluded: “The Village of Liberty Police Department remains committed to working with community partners to address public safety issues of this nature. While these individuals were quickly apprehended and arrested, much work remains from the entire community to adequately address the realities of the ongoing systems in which conditions like this are created.”