Youth Coach Accused of Harassment

A Huntington man who manages a youth baseball team was arrested Friday on charges of harassing another coach he'd gotten into a dispute with.

Suffolk County police said Robert Sanfilippo, 45, of 20 Timber Ridge Dr., stalked a rival coach’s family and sent threatening text messages to the competing coach.

Police gave this account: Sanfilippo, who manages the team Vengeance, a youth baseball squad of 10 and 11 year old boys, got into an altercation with another coach at a tournament in May. He later bought an untraceable phone and in August, sent several text messages with pictures, threatening to harm the victim, his son, and his wife.

Fourth Precinct Crime Section officers determined the phone belonged to Sanfilippo. He was arrested Friday during a game at Baseball Heaven, at 350 County Road 101, in Yaphank, at 5:15 p.m.

Sanfilippo is charged with 20 counts of aggravated harassment and one count of stalking. He is scheduled to be arraigned Saturday at First District Court in Central Islip.