A sting operation by overzealous Long Island officials that destroyed a backyard hive and 60,000 honeybees has spawned a $5 million federal lawsuit.
Daryl Altman and her husband Robert Shepard sued the Village of Lynbrook in Brooklyn federal court earlier this month.
“It was really, really sad,” said Altman, 63, of her butchered bees. “How would you feel if someone came and took away your dog? We nurtured them and took care of them. They are really interesting little creatures.”
The hive was removed by police and building department employees in the village of 19,000 residents in June 2017 when the couple was at work, according to legal papers.
Lynbrook officials have said the backyard hive violated a provision in the village code against “insect, vermin and rodent harborage and infestation.”
“The village code has nothing to do with bees,” argued Shepard, 59, who works for the town of Huntington.
The furious beekeepers told The Post that they consulted with Lynbrook officials before setting up their hive in April 2016.
“We asked them to send us information, but they never did, so we figured they didn’t care and we could have our hive,” said Altman, who works as an allergist.
When a village official left them a warning on their door in May 2017, the couple hired a lawyer to plead their case.
“In no circumstances were village representatives authorized to enter the property to inspect or otherwise interfere with the beehive,” court papers say.
But a month later, the village bee-killers removed the hive, vacuumed up the bees and returned the empty wooden boxes, the couple said.
The village then had the audacity to send them a $300 bill for the removal.
“We’re just law abiding citizens,” said Altman. “We pay exorbitant taxes and mind our own business. All we were doing was taking care of our bees and they had to make an issue.”
During the year that they tended the hive, the couple harvested 40 pounds of honey and even won an honorable mention from the Long Island Beekeepers Club in the “Light Amber” honey category.
Altman and Shepard said they gave away most of their honey to family and friends.
“This whole thing is really devastating,” Shepard said. “With the beehive in the morning you come down, and there is a humming and vibrancy. Now, you come down and it’s silent.”
“It’s still really raw,” said Altman. “And you know what’s really pathetic? Every evening, the bees would come home to their hive. When the village took it away, we saw a few lost bees circling around. They had nowhere to go.”